China holds live-firing drills in Gulf of Tonkin amid rising tensions in South China Sea

Adding to the latest in a series of military drills, Beijing has said a branch of its coast guard is holding live-fire exercises from Monday to Wednesday (22 – 24 August). The drill is being staged at the Gulf of Tonkin, the northern arm of the South China Sea, home to several territorial disputes among Asian countries.

 

Despite fresh tensions in the disputed waters, China’s Maritime Safety Administration said it was banning vessels from entering the area between China’s southern island province of Hainan and the northern coast of Vietnam. The Tonkin Gulf has historical significance over the Vietnam War between the US and Vietnam, the Associated Press reported.

 

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