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Violence abates in Vietnam as U.S. warns China for 'provocation'

16 May 2014 22:24 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Anti-China violence subsided in Vietnam on Friday after the prime minister called for calm, but the United States said China's "provocative" actions in maritime disputes were dangerous and had to stop, Reuters.

Thousands of people attacked businesses and factories in Vietnam's industrial parks earlier in the week, targeting Chinese workers and Chinese-owned businesses after Beijing parked an oil rig in a part of the South China Sea claimed by Hanoi. Many Taiwanese-owned firms bore the brunt because the crowds believed they were owned by mainland Chinese.

The riots risk derailing a major driver of the country's economic growth - industrial parks account for more than 30 percent of Vietnam's exports and have attracted around $110 billion in foreign direct investment.

The Vietnamese government has said one person was killed in the rioting on Tuesday and Wednesday night, but a doctor at a hospital near one area of clashes said he had seen 21 dead bodies and that at least 100 people were wounded.

An eyewitness to fighting between Chinese and Vietnamese workers in an industrial zone in the same area said she had seen at least 13 bodies.

There were no reports of fresh violence on Friday.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has called on police and state and local authorities to restore order and ensure the safety of people and property in the affected areas.

"Prime Minister asked and called every Vietnam citizen to promote patriotism and protect the fatherland's sacred sovereignty by practical activities following the law," said a text message sent to mobile phone subscribers.

"Don't allow bad people to instigate extremist actions that damage the country's interest and image."