China’s Foreign Ministry recently held a press conference to slander Vietnam and justify its illegal actions in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

Deputy Director-General of the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Department of Boundary and Ocean Affairs, Yi Xianliang accused Vietnam of deploying many vessels, including military ships to obstruct the normal operations of the oil rig Haiyang Shiyou- 981 and ram Chinese ships.

He said that Vietnam dropped obstacles and fishing nets into water, which impacted the safety of Chinese vessels and their crews.

When asked why Chinese vessels were damaged at the prow, which indicates that they hit Vietnamese vessels, he blamed rough sea and said that the prow was the most vulnerable part in case of collision.

Yi also said that China had not sent any modern military ships to protect the oilrig, and if there was any, they just passed by the area.

It was obvious that the scenario had been set up when reporters from Chinese news agencies were invited to raise questions, so that Yi could read the prepared answers.

He also said that his nation hopes Vietnam will not bring the case to an international arbitration court and that China wants to deal with the issue through bilateral negotiations.

VNN/VNA