When China's state-owned oil company dispatched an oil rig to a contested area of the South China Sea it flicked a match on a long-smoldering dispute with its communist neighbor Vietnam. Analysts say Beijing must have known the move would elicit some reaction, but it clearly didn't predict having to evacuate thousands of Chinese nationals desperate to put some distance between them and violent Vietnamese protests. "The whole episode seems to reek of miscalculation, perhaps by both sides, but it demonstrates how volatile how this region can be," said Alexander Neill, Shangri-La Dialogue Senior Fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, Asia (IISS).
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China evacuates thousands of nationals from Vietnam amid territorial dispute
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Protests erupted after China's state oil company sent a rig to disputed territory
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Vietnam says the rig site is on its continental shelf and within its Exclusive Economic Zone
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China says the rig will be there until mid-August, has sent ships to guard the site
The Chinese rig was escorted to the region by naval vessels and fighter jets, drawing @placeholder boats to the area and raising tensions at sea.
While many commentators say Vietnam has every right to feel appalled over the positioning of the @placeholder rig, at least one analyst says the issue not as clear cut as some suggest.
Trade between China and Vietnam reached more than 50 billion dollars in 2013 according to Chinese state media and @placeholder depends heavily on foreign investment.