HANOI • A Chinese ship embroiled in a stand-off with Vietnamese vessels last year has returned to waters near Vietnam as Washington accused Beijing of pushing its presence in the South China Sea while other claimants are pre-occupied with the coronavirus.

Vietnamese vessels last year spent months shadowing the Chinese survey vessel, Haiyang Dizhi 8, in resource-rich waters that are a potential global flashpoint as the United States challenges China's sweeping maritime claims.

Yesterday, the ship, which is used for offshore seismic surveys, appeared again 158km off Vietnam's coast, within its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), flanked by at least one China Coast Guard vessel, according to data issued by Marine Traffic, a website that tracks shipping.

At least three Vietnamese vessels were moving with the Chinese ship, the data shows.

The presence of the Haiyang Dizhi 8 in Vietnam's EEZ comes towards the scheduled end of a 15-day nationwide lockdown in Vietnam aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus.

It also follows the sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat near islands in the disputed waters this month, an act that drew a protest from Vietnam and accusations that China had violated its sovereignty and threatened the lives of its fishermen.

The US, which last month sent an aircraft carrier to the central Vietnamese port of Danang, said it was "seriously concerned" about China's reported sinking of the vessel. "We call on the PRC to remain focused on supporting international efforts to combat the global pandemic, and to stop exploiting the distraction or vulnerability of other states to expand its unlawful claims in the South China Sea," the State Department said in a statement, referring to China by its official name, the People's Republic of China.

The Philippines, which also has disputed claims in the South China Sea, has raised its concerns too.

China and Vietnam have for years been at loggerheads over the potentially energy-rich waters, called the East Sea by Vietnam.

During the stand-off last year, at least one China Coast Guard vessel spent weeks in waters close to an oil rig in a Vietnamese oil block, operated by Russia's Rosneft, while the Haiyang Dizhi 8 conducted suspected oil exploration surveys in large expanses of Vietnam's EEZ.

"The deployment of the vessel is Beijing's move to once again baselessly assert its sovereignty in the South China Sea," said Dr Ha Hoang Hop, a fellow at Singapore's ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

Yesterday, the (Chinese) ship, which is used for offshore seismic surveys, appeared again 158km off Vietnam's coast, within its exclusive economic zone, flanked by at least one China Coast Guard vessel.

"China is using the coronavirus distraction to increase its assertiveness in the South China Sea, at a time when the US and Europe are struggling to cope with the new coronavirus."

REUTERS