China, Vietnam to Resolve Maritime Row: Report

BEIJING - China and Vietnam have pledged to resolve a row over competing South China Sea territorial claims "peacefully", Chinese media quoted both sides saying June 26 after tensions spiked over the issue.

The neighbors pledged to reach a "peaceful resolution of the maritime dispute between the two countries through negotiations and friendly consultations," a report by China's official Xinhua news agency said.

They agreed to "take effective measures to jointly safeguard peace and stability in the South China Sea" and speed up talks aimed at reaching an agreement on addressing bilateral maritime disputes, Xinhua said.

The joint vow was made during talks in Beijing on June 25 between Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo, China's senior foreign-policy official, and Vietnamese Vice Foreign Minister Ho Xuan Son.

But no details on specific plans or timings were given.

Besides the recent Sino-Vietnamese tensions, the Philippines has also complained of increasingly aggressive actions by Beijing in waters claimed by both nations in the strategically vital and potentially resource-rich South China Sea.

The Philippines and China - along with Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam - claim all or part of the South China Sea, and the area has long been considered one of Asia's potential military flashpoints.

The United States has stepped into the fray, pledging to support the defense of its longtime ally the Philippines.

Those two countries will hold 11 days of naval exercises starting on June 28 off the southwestern Philippines in a show of unity.

Defense News