CHINA and Vietnam are locked in a new standoff over the imminent drilling by Vietnamese contractor PV Drilling in a disputed area of the South China Sea in which Vietnam has long been producing oil and gas. China sent research vessel Xiangyanghong 10, escorted by Chinese Coast Guard vessels 5305 and 4303, and seven fishing boats to the Wan'an Beach waters late last week to patrol and monitor the upcoming drilling at the DHN-4X oil well location of Block 05-01A, held on a 100% basis by PetroVietnam. The Chinese vessels were reported by Reuters to have entered the adjacent Block 04-03, owned by Vietsovpetro, a joint venture of Russia's Zarubezhneft and PetroVietnam.
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