Paracel or Spratly?

[Buulong Nguyen <buulong@dutmpw1.tudelft.nl>]

Dear anh Tuan and friends,

Anh Tuan is right about the distances (see quote below).

I have just checked the maps, following are approximations of bird's 
flight distance (in miles) between:

  Vietnam continental shore - the most western island of Spratly: 300 
  (at about Phan Rang/Phan Thiet)

  The most southern point of - the most northern island of Spratly: 600 
  Hainan island
  	
  China continental shore - the most northern island of Spratly: 800

-------------
  Vietnam continental shore - the most western island of Paracel: 200
  (at about Danang)

  The most southern point of Hainan island - the most north-western 
  island of Paracel: 150

  China continental shore - the most northern island of Paracel: 250

------------------

So it seems that the Chinese Kantan-3 oil rig was drilling in the waters by 
the Paracel archipelago. It does not mean, however, that these waters 
are within China's jurisdiction.

------------------

It is worth noting that a big Chinese offshore gas field, called Yinggehai, 
is situated between vietnamese shore at Hue and Hainan: about 100-150 miles  
(in bird's flight)
The Yinggehai field is a producing one with gas pipelines to Sanya 
(Hainan isl.) and to Hongkong.

-----------------

Sources:
1). Energy Map of China (detail map South Chinese Sea) - Petroleum 
Economist Energy Map Series, No 10, 3rd Edition - Produced by the 
Petroleum Economist Ltd., London in association with Price Waterhouse 
(World Energy Group) 

2). Energy map of Asia - Petroleum Economist Energy Map Series, No 7, 4th 
Edition - Produced by the Petroleum Economist Ltd., London, in 
association with British Gas.

Regards, Buu-Long


On Mon, 24 Mar 1997, Tuan Pham wrote:

> >Hanoi, Mar. 21 (IPS) --  Vietnam and China are once again
> >sparring over disputed territory in the South China Sea, this time
> >as a result of Beijing's ongoing exploration for oil in waters that 
> >Hanoi says are within its jurisdiction.
> >...
> >The Chinese Kantan-3 oil rig was drilling near the Spratly
> >Islands, in an area  Vietnam calls Block 113 some 64 nautical miles
> >off Chan May cape halfway down the country's coast. Near Da Nang,
> >it is some 71 nautical miles off China's Hainan island.
> 
> Hi everybody
> 
> Among all the fuss has anyone bothered to check the map?
> 
> If the Chinese oil rig is between Danang and Hainan, then
> it can't be "near the Spratlys", which is between Southern
> VN and Borneo. The Spratlys are about 1000 km from the
> area described! See
> http://www.reedbooks.com.au/heinemann/hot/spratloc.html
> 
> Peter_Donahoe@notes.rbs.org wrote
> 
>   closely at this latest incident...  The rig is only 6 miles closer
>   to VN than it is to Hainan.