China warns Rosneft against drilling in disputed territory

BEIJING/MOSCOW, May 17 (PRIME) -- The territories in the South China Sea, where Russian oil major Rosneft’s unit in Vietnam has started drilling, belong to China, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Thursday and asked the company to respect the country’s sovereignty.

Rosneft earlier said that Rosneft Vietnam B.V. had started drilling the Lan Do deposit on the shelf on the disputed territory.

The Chinese official said, “We have paid attention to the corresponding statements. I will reiterate that no state, organization, company or person can lead exploratory activities in the waters under Chinese sovereignty without Chinese authorities’ permission. We call on the corresponding sides to pay due respect to China’s sovereignty.”

However, a Rosneft official said that the licensed areas are located in the Vietnamese territorial waters.

“The company carries out its operations on the Vietnam’s shelf in strict correspondence with the license obligations and fulfills the Republic of Viet-Nam subsoil use legislation,” the official told PRIME.

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