Columns
China-Vietnam conflict and Sri Lanka’s diplomatic dilemma
View(s):As the tensions between Vietnam and China erupt in violence over their dispute in the South China Sea, Sri Lanka will have to walk a diplomatic tightrope with two Asian friends with whom it enjoys traditionally cordial relations.
Vietnamese anger turned deadly on Thursday as anti-Chinese riots broke out in an industrial zone in south Vietnam where a Taiwanese-owned steel factory was attacked. Reuters reported up to 21 deaths while Xinhua said one Chinese citizen had been killed and more than 100 injured. The latest mob violence would seem to bring the longstanding conflict to a new level. It followed protests in Vietnamese cities over Beijing’s deployment of an oil rig into disputed waters claimed by both sides.
The ill informed state of Sri Lankan officials regarding Sino-Vietnam relations embarrassingly came to light when Vietnamese media reported comments made by Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne who visited Hanoi to attend UN Vesak Day. At a reception hosted by his Vietnamese counterpart Jayaratne reportedly backed Hanoi’s stance in the dispute, requesting China to withdraw its oil rig from Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone, only to have the Ministry of External Affairs issue a statement in Colombo the next day (May 10) saying that “disputes concerning the South China Sea need to be settled bilaterally through negotiations by the concerned parties.” At the time of Jayaratne’s statement China and Vietnam were already trading allegations that their ships had rammed each other, and China had reportedly used water cannon to protect its drilling operations.
The MEA statement reflects China’s preferred bilateral approach in dealing with its smaller, weaker neighbours who dispute its ownership claims over most of the South China Sea and its islands — mostly barren rocks. The smaller littoral states contesting China’s claims on the other hand cite international law including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), and prefer multilateral mechanisms in their negotiations on this issue. It has dominated recent summits of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Contesting claims
The Philippines for one has taken its fight to a UN tribunal on the Law of the Sea for arbitration. “A dialogue between two countries can’t resolve issues affecting different members of a region,” said Philippine president Benigno Aquino, before boarding a plane to attend the 24th ASEAN summit held last weekend in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. There, both Vietnam and the Philippines were vocal about China’s increasing assertiveness in the South China Sea. Vietnam refers to the disputed waters it lays claim to, which lie to its east, as the ‘East Sea,’ and the Philippines refers to the ocean territory it claims, as the ‘West Philippine Sea,’ indicating the contested status of these waters. Other ASEAN members who claim parts of the South China Sea are Brunei and Malaysia. Taiwan also makes claims.
Expressing serious concern over the escalation of the maritime conflict in their region, the ASEAN foreign ministers gathered in Nay Pyi Taw issued a special statement on May 10 urging “all parties concerned, in accordance with the universally recognised principles of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” and to avoid actions which could undermine peace and stability in the area. They called for the full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), a pact ASEAN signed with China in 2002.
The dispute over the South China Sea became so acrimonious in 2012 that for the first time in 45 years of its history ASEAN was unable to issue a joint statement at the conclusion of its summit that year. Commenting on the statements made by some countries at that summit Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, referring to the UNCLOS said “the Convention has not given itself the authority to change the territory of countries” and that it “cannot be cited as the basis for arbitration in territorial disputes between countries.”
Flashpoint of conflict
The seas of East Asia have become a flashpoint of conflict in the world today on account of the key shipping lanes located in the region and its bountiful marine resources, which are thought to include rich oil and gas reserves. China’s seemingly aggressive behaviour and ongoing maritime spats with its neighbours would need to be seen not only in terms of its naval expansion but also in relation to the US’s increased interest in the region with its ‘pivot to Asia,’ also described as ‘strategic rebalancing.’ In Washington on Thursday a high ranking Chinese official asked the US to ‘objectively view issues about the East China Sea and the South China Sea.’
In the East China Sea, China is locked in a dispute with Japan over islands that China calls Diaoyu and Japan calls Senkaku. US president Barrack Obama made a four nation tour of the region last month during which, according to reports, he chose his words carefully so as not to antagonise China. In Japan, however, he confirmed that the disputed islands in the East China Sea came under a security treaty that commits the US to act if Japan is attacked, the BBC reported. The tour which also took him to South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines is seen as a show of US support for its allies in the region. Ahead of his visit to the Philippines, Manila had signed a military agreement that gave the US access to its bases.
Vietnam, China and also Japan are members of the UN Human Rights Council who were supportive of Sri Lanka when the US brought an intrusive resolution calling for an international war crimes probe in the country. Against the background of complex developments in East Asia, which are complicated by big power rivalries, the muddled statements made by Sri Lanka on the Vietnam-China dispute betray a lack of diplomatic sophistication. This is especially lamentable at a time when the country desperately needs to build the broadest possible alliances globally, and to restore the international respect it once enjoyed.