China’s withdrawal of their vessels and oil rig from Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) will make room for diplomacy to reduce the escalating tension.

The Straits Times on June 10 quoted US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel as saying "We do have a problem with blanket assertions by both Vietnam and China that their claims are indisputable."

Speaking at a press conference in Yangon, Myanmar after attending the ASEAN Regional Forum, Mr Russell stressed, "The issue is one of behaviour, not absolute rights and the problem with the deployment of the rig in part is that it was done at a time of heightened tensions following a series of other troubling confrontations at sea."

Russell's statement came shortly after China's Foreign Ministry blatantly presented its case for sovereignty over the Paracel islands to the UN  based on the lack of historical evidence such as ancient naval expeditions and latter day evidence such as Vietnamese maps describing the isles with Chinese names.

While the US does not have a position on the merits of the case, Russel noted that Vietnam has claimed sovereignty of the Paracels for a long time. Moreover, it also had been developing oil and gas reserves in an area where it had formally declared an EEZ that derives from its mainland coast.

"Both China and Vietnam should remove all their ships, and China should remove the oil rig not because we take a position on who is right but to create space for the diplomatic process to manage tensions," he said.