CORRECTED-UPDATE 1-Vietnam says Chinese vessel violated its sovereignty in South China Sea

(Corrects first paragraph to show Vietnam called on China to
withdraw only the vessels it accused of violating its
sovereignty, not all Chinese ships)
By Khanh Vu
HANOI, July 19 (Reuters) - Vietnam on Friday accused a
Chinese oil survey vessel and its escorts of violating its
sovereignty and demanded that China remove the ships from
Vietnamese waters.
Vietnam and China have for years long been embroiled in a
dispute over the potentially energy-rich stretch of waters in
the South China Sea.
On Wednesday, two U.S.-based think tanks reported that
Chinese and Vietnamese vessels had engaged in a standoff lasting
several weeks near an oil block in Vietnam's exclusive economic
zone. Neither Beijing nor Hanoi have directly confirmed or
denied the reports. "Over the last several days, the Chinese survey ship,
Haiyang Dizhi 8, and its escorts conducted activities in the
southern area of the East Sea that violated Vietnam's exclusive
economic zone and continental shelf," Vietnam's Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang said in a statement, referring to
the South China Sea.
"This area lies entirely within the Vietnamese waters," Hang
said.
Vietnam has demanded China stop the "unlawful activities"
and that its ships leave Vietnamese waters, she said.
Hang also said Vietnam called on the international community
to join its efforts in maintaining order, peace and security in
the South China Sea, which was in the common interest of all
countries in the region and beyond.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang, in response
to questions for comments about the standoff, said on Wednesday
that "We hope the Vietnamese side can earnestly respect China's
sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the relevant waters, and
do not take any move that may complicate matters."
According to further analysis provided on Friday by one of
the think tanks, the Center for Advanced Defense Studies
(C4ADS), the Haiyang Dizhi 8 was still active in Vietnamese
waters.