New South China Sea Standoff: Chinese Ship Tags Malaysian Oil Exploration Vessel

The South China Sea has been the arena where skirmishes have occurred for thousands of years between nations with territorial claims on the resource-rich waters. The most recent skirmish occurred Friday (April 17) when a Chinese survey vessel was observed “tagging” areas near where Malaysia’s state oil firm Petronas is operating.

The term “tagging” refers to a vessel moving in a “hash-shaped pattern” consistent with carrying out a survey.

The Chinese survey vessel Haiyang Dizhi 8 was flanked by Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) ships close to the West Capella exploration vessel operated by Petronas. According to Reuters, the same ship was in Vietnamese waters earlier this week. A Vietnamese fishing boat was sunk by a CCG vessel the week before.

The right to search for oil and gas from beneath the South China Sea is the focal point of recent disputes. The People’s Republic of China (PRC), the large and powerful Communist country with a military force of 2.5 million active and reserve forces, can easily bully its much smaller and militarily weaker neighbors.

The one “victory” for the smaller countries was the 2016 judgment by the United Nation’s Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague that favored the Philippines' exclusive economic zone (EEZ) over China’s Nine-Dash Line that claims the bulk of the South China Sea. China has chosen to simply ignore the PCA ruling.

Last year, Chinese and Philippine foreign ministers reached an agreement for the two countries to pursue joint oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea. Moving forward on the agreement has proved challenging, mostly because of China’s territorial claims and its continued activities in the Spratly islands that may be of a military nature instead of research. Any proceeds from research would greatly benefit the Philippines because of the “leverage” they have with the PCA ruling.

The current coronavirus pandemic has given China a chance to exploit the South China Sea as the U.S. and the rest of the world is focused on battling COVID-19 instead of minor territorial spats in Asian waters. Lacking the U.S. presence to provide a balance of power could embolden China to take on an even more aggressive stance.

Another factor adding tensions is the Philippine agreement with China. It indicates that the archipelago under President Rodrigo Duterte is warming up to China and distancing itself from the U.S. Washington's response in recent weeks has been to show a presence in Vietnamese waters, perhaps nurturing a closer relationship to counter future Philippine-Chinese alignments.

The U.S. State Department reacted to the sinking of the Vietnamese boat, commenting, “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.”

With its latest activities in Malaysian waters, it appears that Beijing is not yet heeding this request.