Dear Colleagues,
For those interested in the latest twists and turns in the disputed Spratly
Islands in the South China Sea, Kyodo (Beijing) ran a story today (Sept. 8,
1998) entitled "China demands Vietnam withdraw from reefs in Spratlys."
The PRC reportedly protested Vietnam's recent occupation of Orleans Shoal
and Kingston Shoal and demanded that Hanoi dismantle all installations and
refrain from similar seizures of Chinese territory. The story also
reported that on 4 Sept. Vietnam had protested to China for allowing a US
oil company to search for oil on Vietnam's continental shelf.
According to my references Orleans Shoal is an alternative name for Orleana
Shoal (Ao-nan Ansha in Chinese) which is located at 7°42'N, 111°45'E.
Kingston Shoal (Jindu Ansha for the PRC and Chin-tun Ansha for Taipei) is
located at 7°33'N, 111°35'E. Both--presumably submerged--features are on
the larger Rifleman Bank, which falls outside of Philippine or Malaysian
claims, but is within the area claimed by Brunei, China (including Taiwan),
and Vietnam.
According to my calculations, Orleana Shoal is 24.8 km northeast of
Kingston Shoal. Orleana Shoal lies 105.3 km south of Spratly Island and
130.0 km west of Amboyna Cay.
Regards,
Dan Dzurek
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