Vietnam condemns China for assault on its fishermen in the disputed South China Sea

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam condemned China on Thursday while saying that Chinese law enforcement personnel assaulted 10 Vietnamese fishermen, damaged their fishing gear and seized about 4 tons of fish catch near the disputed Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.

The fishermen first reported the assault near the Chinese-controlled islands by radio on Sunday but did not identify the attackers.

Three of the fishermen suffered broken limbs and the rest sustained other injuries, according to Vietnamese state media. Some were taken on stretchers to a hospital after they returned to Quang Ngai province late Monday.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs blamed Chinese law enforcement personnel on Thursday for the high-seas attack, saying it had “seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty in the Paracel Islands,” international law and an agreement by the leaders of the rival claimant countries to better manage their territorial disputes.

Chinese officials did not immediately issue a reaction.

Vietnam conveyed its protest and alarm over the attack to the Chinese ambassador in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi.

Vietnam demanded that Beijing respect its sovereignty in the Paracel Islands, launch an investigation and provide Hanoi with information about the attack, Vietnamese spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said in a statement posted on the Foreign Ministry’s website.

China has become increasingly aggressive in asserting its claims in virtually the entire South China Sea, through which about $5 trillion in global trade transits each year. The busy sea passage is also believed to be sitting atop vast undersea deposits of oil and gas.

Aside from China and the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the