南海問題爭端再起 中越互相指責
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週日﹐在越南河內﹐約200名越南示威者在中國駐越大使館前抗議。
越
南指責中國破壞其一艘地震調查船﹐而中國駐菲律賓大使則呼籲中國鄰邦在未經中國允許的情況下應停止在爭議水域探測石油﹐可能蘊藏豐富資源的南中國海緊張局勢突然加劇。近幾個月來﹐有關南中國海能否保持穩定的擔憂不斷加劇﹐逐步升級演化成越南勘探船和中國巡邏船之間的一系列沖突﹐中國和菲律賓之間的口水戰也日益惡化。
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越南指責如圖所示的中國艦艇破壞該國艦只。
中國駐菲律賓大使劉建超否認中國在上述地區有任何不當行為﹐同時敦促那些聲稱對南中國海擁有主權的國家停止油氣鑽探行為。
地區安全分析人士說﹐該事件反映出中國在南中國海這片爭議水域炫耀武力的一種方式。除中國外﹐越南、菲律賓、台灣、文萊和馬來西亞都聲稱對該水域擁有全部或部分主權。中國認為整片南中國海都是中國領土。
新 南威爾士大學(University of New South Wales)澳洲國防軍事學院(Australian Defence Force Academy)教授塞耶(Carlyle Thayer)說﹐導致分歧惡化的誘因主要是經濟利益。人們普遍認為﹐南中國海那些半淹沒的島嶼和礁石﹐尤其是南沙群島和西沙群島的海底﹐蘊藏著大規模的 石油和天然氣﹐越南和菲律賓已經開始對部分油氣田進行開發。
塞耶說﹐中國希望控制這些資源﹐因為它們不僅儲量豐富﹐而且跟中國本土的距離比中東石油更近。
塞耶說﹐中國海軍還可保護運送南中國海石油的海上航線。他說﹐中國為推動本國經濟高速增長﹐試圖在全球各地獲得能源供應﹐南中國海是中國這一努力的一部分。
中國說過﹐希望維持地區和平﹐用談判的方式解決海上分歧。但同時﹐中國也堅持認為﹐鄰國不斷擴大在南中國海的勘探範圍﹐損害了中國在這片海域的利益。
中國大使劉建超在馬尼拉對記者說﹐我們呼籲其它各方停止在中國擁有領土主權的地方尋找資源開發的可能性。他還說﹐除非船只遭到攻擊﹐否則中國不會動武。
兩週前﹐越南指責一艘中國巡邏艇割斷了另外一艘地震勘測船上的電纜。和週四報導的事件一樣﹐也是發生在距離越南海岸200海里以內的海域。根據國際法的規定﹐越南將這一海域視為自己專有的經濟區。
在 3月初發生的一起類似事件中﹐菲律賓軍方說﹐在菲律賓巴拉望省(Palawan)以西的禮樂灘(Reed Bank)附近海域﹐兩艘中國船只干擾了一艘菲律賓石油勘探船的活動。菲律賓政府還指責中國海軍2月底向傑克森環礁(Jackson Atoll﹐中國稱五方礁)的菲律賓漁民開火。傑克森環礁靠近菲律賓﹐菲律賓宣稱對其擁有主權。
菲律賓就中國在南海所謂的行為向聯合國提出了一系列的指控。
不 過﹐安全分析人士說﹐較小主張國聯合行動將南海問題的解決方案國際化﹐特別是越南和菲律賓﹐可能會促使中國做出越來越敵對的回應。美國國務卿希拉里•克林 頓(Hillary Clinton)去年在訪問越南期間﹐提出為促進這一海域的多方會談提供幫助﹐這令中國極為不滿。
此後﹐越南繼續敦促東盟(Association of Southeast Asian Nations) 10國在解決這一地區緊張局勢中發揮核心作用。菲律賓最近幾個月也開始敦促進行多方會談。而此前菲律賓曾花數年時間爭取鞏固與中國的政治和經濟同盟關係。
美國也再次涉足這一爭議問題。美國國防部長蓋茨(Robert Gates)上週六預測﹐除非對立的主張國找到一個方法和平解決爭端﹐否則可能會發生更多的沖突。
與此同時﹐這一地區的緊張局勢繼續惡化﹐特別是在越南。週日﹐約200名越南示威者抗議中國對這一海域不斷擴大的影響﹐這是對一個同為共產主義制度的國家少有的公開抗議。一些分析人士說﹐鑒於越南對公開不滿意見的嚴格控制﹐這一事件肯定獲得了越南當局一定程度上的支持。
越南總理阮晉勇(Nguyen Tan Dung)週三稱﹐越南對南海的主權是“無可爭辯的”。 這是阮晉勇自越南與中國的爭端惡化以來首次公開發表言論﹐表明河內想有意對抗中國。
河內此前一直提出把金蘭灣(Cam Ranh Bay)海軍基地提供給在這一地區作業的外國海軍作為維修和加油站。分析人士預計此舉可能會促使澳大利亞、俄羅斯、印度和美國等國家的船只大量到港停靠。
越南還將從俄羅斯購買六艘基洛級潛艇﹐以幫助擴大該國在南海的影響﹐並幫助反制中國日益增強的海軍實力。
James Hookway
Tensions flared in the potentially resource-rich South China Sea as Vietnam accused China of sabotaging a seismic survey boat while Beijing's ambassador to the Philippines called on China's neighbors to stop probing for oil in disputed waters without its permission.
Worries over the stability of the South China Sea have mounted steadily in recent months, escalating into a series of clashes between Vietnamese exploration craft and Chinese patrol boats and a worsening war of words with the Philippines.
In the latest incident, Vietnam's foreign ministry on Thursday said a Chinese fishing boat supported by two Chinese naval patrol craft cut a cable being used by a seismic survey craft operated by state-run energy company PetroVietnam. Ministry spokeswoman Nguyen Phuong Nga told reporters in Hanoi that the Chinese boat's actions were 'completely premeditated' and 'seriously violated Vietnam's sovereign rights.'
China's ambassador to the Philippines, Liu Jianchao, denied any wrongdoing in the area while also urging South China Sea claimants to stop drilling for oil and gas.
Regional security analysts say the incident reflects a pattern of Chinese muscle-flexing in the disputed waters, which are claimed in whole or in part by Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Brunei and Malaysia in addition to China, which says it considers the entire South China Sea as its sovereign territory.
Carlyle Thayer, a professor at Australian Defence Force Academy at the University of New South Wales, says the trigger for the worsening disputes is largely economic. The semi-submerged islands and reefs of the South China Sea--especially the Spratly Islands and the Paracels--are widely believed to lie atop significant reserves of oil and natural gas, and Vietnam and the Philippines are already tapping some fields in the region.
China 'seeks to control these resources because they are abundant and closer to home than oil from the Middle East,' Mr. Thayer said.
The Chinese navy can also protect the sea routes over which South China Sea oil must be carried, he said. 'The South China Sea forms one part of a larger effort by China to secure energy supplies around the world in order to fuel its high economic growth rates,' he said.
China has said it wants to preserve peace in the region and negotiate sea disputes. But it also has argued neighboring countries are undermining its interests in the South China Sea as they expand exploration there.
'We're calling on other parties to stop searching for the possibility of exploiting resources in these areas where China has its claims,' Chinese Ambassador Liu Jianchao told reporters in Manila, adding that 'we will never use force unless attacked.'
Two weeks ago, Vietnam accused a Chinese patrol craft of cutting the cables on another survey boat. Like the incident reported Thursday, it occurred within 200 nautical miles of Vietnam's coast, which, under international law, Vietnam regards as its own exclusive economic zone.
In a similar incident in early March, the Philippine military said two Chinese boats disrupted a Philippine oil exploration boat's activities near the Reed Bank west of the Philippines' Palawan province. The Philippine government also accuses China's navy of firing on Filipino fisherman at Jackson Atoll, which is near the Philippines and claimed by that country, in late February.
The Philippines has filed a series of complaints with the United Nations about China's alleged behavior in the South China Sea.
However, security analysts say a concerted effort among the smaller claimant countries--especially Vietnam and the Philippines--to internationalize a settlement over the South China Sea might be goading China into increasingly belligerent responses. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's move to offer Washington's assistance in facilitating multiparty talks over the waters while visiting Vietnam last year infuriated China.
Since then, Vietnam has continued to press for the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations to play a central role in resolving tensions in the area. The Philippines, which had spent several years trying to firm up political and economic alliances with China, has also begun pushing for multiparty talks in recent months.
The U.S., too, has waded once more into the controversy, with Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Saturday predicting that more clashes could occur unless the rival claimants find a way to peacefully settle their disputes.
In the meantime, stresses and strains in the region continue to deepen, especially in Vietnam. Some 200 Vietnamese demonstrators protested against China's expanding influence over the sea on Sunday in a rare public display against a fellow Communist nation--an event which some analysts say must have involved a degree of support from the Vietnamese authorities, given its tight control over public dissent.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, in his first public comments since Vietnam's dispute with China worsened, on Wednesday described Vietnam's claims to the South China sea as 'incontestable,' in a sign of Hanoi's willingness to stand up to China.
Hanoi previously has offered its navy base at Cam Ranh Bay as a repair and refueling stop for foreign navies operating in the region--a move that analysts expect could prompt a flood of port calls from vessels from countries such as Australia, Russia, India and the U.S.
Vietnam is also buying six Kilo-class submarines from Russia to help expand its reach in the South China Sea and also help counteract China's growing naval power.
James Hookway
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