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China’s state-run Global Times on April 11 said the Liaoning steamed into the South China Sea, which Vietnam calls the East Sea, after completing a week of naval exercises around Taiwan. This happened after a U.S. Navy expeditionary strike group fronted by aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt and amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island conducted exercises in the area a day earlier. The two flat-top warships were joined by a cruiser, destroyers and smaller amphibious ships, the CNN reported.

“The present deployment of the USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group and China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier is part of an established pattern of action-reaction by the two rivals,” said Carlyle Thayer, Emeritus Professor, University of New South Wales Canberra at the Australian Defense Force Academy.

The U.S. Navy’s Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group in the South China Sea in April 2021. Photo by U.S. Navy.

Thayer said that for many years, China has been developing what the Pentagon terms A2AD capabilities (Anti-Access Area Denial) in the first island chain stretching from Japan to the Philippines. The U.S., for its part, seeks to demonstrate to allies, security partners and other regional states that the East Sea is not an “exclusive Chinese lake.”

He said the moves are not new, the deployment of two aircraft carriers at the same time repeats the pattern witnessed last year when the U.S. deployed three Carrier Strike Groups and China dispatched the Liaoning. China has also based its second aircraft carrier Shandon at Sanya on Hainan Island.

Collin Koh Swee Lean, research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) in Singapore, also said this posturing and counter posturing wasn’t new. It’s been part of the series of such developments in the East Sea and across regional waters over the recent years.

“Tensions continue to spike between China and the U.S. over the East Sea and Taiwan,” he said.

For the Americans, clearly the aim is to assert a continued hard line on China’s provocations against Taiwan and coercive activities in the East Sea, especially where it concerns the Whitsun Reef incident.

The reef is located within the territorial waters of the Grierson Reef, part of Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands. The Philippines, among other countries, has recently voiced opposition to more than 200 Chinese vessels being illegally anchored at the reef. The fact that they are not catching fish despite good weather conditions makes their presence more dubious and suspicious, observers have said.

For its part, Vietnam has said it was closely monitoring the situation in order to protect and assert the nation’s sovereignty and sovereignty rights over sea areas in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Koh sees the U.S. action as demonstrating continued security commitment towards the region, and perhaps more pertinently, to demonstrate the commitment that in the face of a growing People’s Liberation Army challenge. For the Chinese, it’s meant to signal resolve that Beijing won’t be browbeaten by the Americans. Koh noted that people have to look at this in this year’s special context, revolving around the 100th anniversary of the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

“It’s important to demonstrate to the domestic audience that the Party carries political legitimacy and would safeguard China’s core interests.”

Carl Schuster, a visiting professor at the Hawaii Pacific University, said the China’s carrier was in the East Sea to complete its annual crew and strike group training program before releasing the conscripts in May. Beijing will claim it is a response to the American carrier’s exercises there. Meanwhile, the U.S. carrier strike group exercises were in response to China’s bullying in the East Sea. The U.S. Navy transiting through the Taiwan Strait and exercises south of Taiwan were to show the U.S. was backing Taiwan as well.

Peter Layton, visiting fellow at the Griffith Asia Institute in Australia, thinks that the PLA Navy is exercising its forces. Meanwhile, for the U.S., the timing is also important given that the Biden Administration has only recently gained office and so wishes to demonstrate its support both for the Philippines and for ASEAN.

The risks involved

Thayer said China’s dispatch of its aircraft carrier sends signals to a domestic audience, regional states and the U.S. that China will defend its sovereignty claims in the East Sea and is not intimidated by the U.S. Navy. At the same time, the U.S is signaling mainly to China and regional states that it remains committed to preserving security and stability in the East Sea and was likewise not intimidated by the People’s Liberation Army Navy.

However, the risk of a confrontation between the two opposing carrier groups is slight, with both sides well aware of the other side’s prowess.

“The greater risk is miscalculation about the intentions of aircraft and or helicopters launched from one of the carriers by the other side.”

According to Koh, the interactions between the American and Chinese naval forces is likely to remain professional.

However, while operating in close proximity to each other at a politically tense time, the risk of accidental or inadvertent encounters between these forces cannot be discounted.

However, Koh added, “At such times we can assume both Beijing and Washington have no stomach for a fight, despite the military posturing and counter posturing, and they’ll seek to keep these activities from hitting the conflict threshold.”

Schuster also said that the risks are minimal, though they exist. He said the forces were not operating in close proximity and both militaries are well disciplined. The U.S. and China are watching each other closely but their respective ship’s weapons are directly under each captain’s control, therefore “these are not inexperienced soldiers with rifles in their hands.”

Naval units operate in a visual range of other navies on a regular basis and no weapon moves without the captain’s knowledge.

Layton cautioned that while he saw no sinister intent this time, the exercise the Liaoning was undertaking and those of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force large air packages exercising near Taiwan in early April are the kinds of military activities that would be engaged in right before any Chinese military operation to capture the Patras Island.

He said there were clear risks seen in the Whitsun Reef incident. In a small area, there were several ships involved including the people’s armed militia, Chinese coast guard ships, nearby PLA Navy vessels and U.S forces. The main flashpoint might be the people’s armed militia who are less likely to be under direct command of the Central Military Commission. The PLA Navy and Chinese Coast Guard will be tightly controlled and unlikely to deliberately provoke U.S. forces, even though they may try and irritate U.S. ships by sailing close and maneuvering around them.

Britain’s Prince Charles, Prince of Wales and Britain’s Princess Anne, Princess Royal, lead the ceremonial funeral procession of Prince Philip to St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, followed by more royal family members. AFP Photo

WINDSOR, UNITED KINGDOM – Queen Elizabeth II on Saturday led Britain in a one-minute’s silence in memory of her late husband, Prince Philip, as she bid him a final farewell at a funeral restricted by coronavirus rules but reflecting his long life of military and public service.

The 94-year-old monarch, dressed in mourning black and a black face mask, sat inside St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle, as the Duke of Edinburgh’s coffin arrived on a bespoke Land Rover which he designed himself.

A military gun was fired to signal the start of the solemn tribute, which was observed in shops, railway stations and at sporting events across the country.

The ceremony with just 30 mourners took place entirely behind the castle’s stately walls, with the public urged to stay away because of the pandemic.

Military Band marches into position at Windsor Castle in Windsor, west of London, ahead of the funeral of Prince Philip. AFP Photo

But small crowds still gathered in Windsor town centre, and on the sweeping Long Walk to the castle gates, behind barriers patrolled by uniformed police.

Ieuan Jones, 37, travelled to the town from his home in the Welsh capital, Cardiff, and called Philip “a strong man, a true hero (who) did so much for this country and the royal family”.

“It’s really a shame that because of the pandemic we can’t pay a wider tribute to the exceptional man he was,” he told AFP.

At Buckingham Palace, the Queen’s central London home, Cardiff-born chef Santosh Singh laid purple tulips to mark the end of an era.

“I love the royals. I think they’re amazing… It’s sad because in time, all this will change,” the 57-year-old said.

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II arrives in the Royal Bentley at the funeral for her husband, Prince Philip. AFP Photo

Ceremonies were earlier held in Sweden and Denmark, while birds from the Royal Pigeon Racing Association were released from the National Memorial Arboretum in central England.

The Duke of Edinburgh — described by royals as “the grandfather of the nation” — died on April 9, aged 99, just weeks after being released following a month-long stay in hospital for treatment of a heart condition and an infection.

‘Huge void’

Britain’s longest-serving royal consort was an almost constant presence at the Queen’s side during her record-breaking reign that began in 1952 as Britain rebuilt from World War II and as its global empire began to unravel.

His death, after 73 years of marriage, has left a “huge void” in her life, the couple’s second son, Prince Andrew, said last weekend.

The Queen released a touching personal photograph of herself with Prince Philip, both looking relaxed and smiling in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland in 2003.

Images of key moments in the couple’s marriage were also shared on the royal family’s social media accounts, as most newspapers reflected on her deep personal loss.

At the service, the Dean of Windsor, David Conner, will pay tribute to Philip’s “unwavering loyalty” to his wife, who turns 95 next week, the country and the Commonwealth, as well as his “courage, fortitude and faith”.

Government Covid-19 regulations have forced hasty revisions to “Operation Forth Bridge”, the long-rehearsed funeral plans for former Royal Navy commander Philip.

But the stripped-back ceremonial funeral still featured members of the armed services he was associated with, including music from military bands.

More than 730 members of the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force, in ceremonial dress and heads bowed, took part, lining the short funeral procession route through the immaculately trimmed grounds of the historic castle.

A minute gun fired and a bell tolled during the sedate, eight-minute journey.

End of an era

The Queen led mourners, as they paid their respects to the man she once called her “strength and stay”, and whose death closes a remarkable chapter for Britain’s most famous family.

The congregation is mostly close family, including the couple’s four children: heir to the throne Prince Charles, 72, Princess Anne, 70, Prince Andrew, 61, and Prince Edward, 57.

Also present are Charles’ eldest son William, 38, who was joined by younger brother, Harry, 36, for the first time since his shock move last year to the United States.

All eyes are on the brothers — whose mother was Charles’ first wife, princess Diana — after a reported falling out over Harry’s move to California with his American wife, Meghan, and their stinging criticisms of the royals.

Meghan, pregnant with her second child, was advised not to travel on medical grounds. Harry has had to quarantine since arriving from Los Angeles.

The brothers, who as young boys walked behind their mother’s coffin at her funeral in 1997, followed the procession on foot, but not side-by-side.

Between them was their cousin, Princess Anne’s son Peter Phillips, 43, which has only fuelled further media rumours of the rift, even if it reflected royal protocol.

Masks and social distancing

Funerals of senior royals are normally grand public affairs, honed over years of planning, combining pomp, pageantry, and a guest list that is a who’s who of world dignitaries.

The last major royal funeral — of the Queen’s mother, also called Queen Elizabeth — in 2002 cost more than £5.4 million (US$7.4 million) and saw more than one million people throng outside Westminster Abbey in central London.

Saturday’s ceremony was a more modest affair but a royal send-off like no other, with two-metre social distancing in place inside the 15th century Gothic chapel.

All guests — in mourning black — are required to wear black face masks before, during and after the ceremony.

The slimmed-down formalities, however, may have appealed to the straight-talking prince, who had an aversion to “fuss”, according to his family.

The duke will be interred in the Royal Vault of St George’s Chapel.

When the Queen dies, he will be transferred to lie alongside her in the King George VI memorial chapel, which houses the remains of her father, George VI, her mother, and the ashes of her younger sister, Princess Margaret. AFP

Illustrative image. — Photo ndh.vn

With a coastline of 102km, Thanh Hoa Province is considered to be in an ideal position for fisheries activities. However, offshore fishing fleets in the province are struggling while locals are no longer interest in fishing.

The hustle and bustle in the past is completely absent at the Lach Hoi fishing port in Sam Son City which once seen baskets full of freshly-caught seafood are transported ashore and then traders deliver to many places.

Hundreds of big and small boats quietly anchored at the port although the first months of the year was considered as the “golden season” for fishermen.

Nguyen Van Tuyen, director of Lach Hoi fishing port said the number of ships arriving and leaving the port have reduced significantly.

“Our port now operates at about 35 per cent of its capacity,” he said, blaming on economic restructuring which causes local workers away from fishing.

Pham Gia Son, a ship owner, said his family has been attached to this ship for many generations.

“We used to make 3-4 fishing trips a month and need 12-14 labourers for a trip but we have faced a lot of difficulties in the past two years due to scarcity of labourers,” he was quoted by Quân đội nhân dân (People’s Army) newspaper as saying.

Son said those who have experience and have attachment to the marine for many years have shifted to other jobs.

“Although we are fully prepared to sail offshore, our ship dock for days because we could not find enough workers,” Son said, adding that there were trips that only the shipowner and the chief engineer are professional and the rest are seasonal labourers.

Echoing Son’s opinion, Nguyen Van Long, director of Ngoc Son Seafood Processing Co.Ltd said the hiring of seamen has met many difficulties over recent years.

His company had 6 large ships specialising in fishing logistic services. Each trip requires 12-15 workers but they could only employ 8-10 people.

Due to lack of labor, the company have to hire workers from other localities, even inexperienced ones from mountainous districts such as Quan Son, Quan Hoa, and Muong Lat.

Nguyen Duc Cuong, head of Thanh Hoa Fisheries sub-department said a lack of labour needed to set sail was occurring in coastal areas of the province.

He said unstable income and hard work were causing fishermen to seek other work.

A decline in fisheries resources, traditional fishing grounds have been narrowed and low efficiency were also problems.

The effect of COVID-19 pandemic, storms and floods and extreme weather condition as well as rising cost of gasoline and labourers have led to inactive of fishing boats.

Similar situation also reported in other central provinces including Nghe An, Quang Tri and Quang Binh

The number of labourers engaged in fishing activities has tended to decrease and turned to “aging” in Nghe An Province in recent years. There are few seamen aged between 18 and 35, even 30 per cent of the marine workforce is more than 60 years old.

Nguyen Van Uoc from Quynh Long Commune in Quynh Luu District said he had joined with seven households in the commune in building a fishing boat with capacity of 717CV.

Due to difficulty in fishing, especially the scarcity of labour, they had to sell the ship at the end of last year at VND1.7 billion (US$73,557), less than one-third of the initial cost. Selling the ship meant that Uoc and dozens of other workers had to find another jobs.

Bui Xuan Truc, deputy head of Quynh Luu District’s Agriculture and Rural Development Office, attributed the decrease in marine labour to unreasonable occupational structure, shortcomings in exploiting and preserving seafood products after harvesting and increasing competition between localities in a fishing ground.

“This requires fishing activities to renovate themselves to keep up with the current trend,” he said.

Coping with the labour shortage, many boat owners in Quang Binh Province’s Bo Trach District had to retain workers by paying salary for them in advance.

Shipowner Nguyen Ngoc Hai in Bo Trach District said: “It is difficulty to recruit enough workers who will accompany us. Thus, labourers will get paid in advance to entice them.”

However, some people did not work for them after receiving the salary, he said.

Longterm solutions

As the shortage of labour on offshore fishing vessels has negative impact on livelihood of fishermen and fisheries exploitation and processing, localities in the central region has adopted solutions to deal with the problems.

Cuong, the head of Thanh Hoa Fisheries Subdepartment, said the province has encouraged boatowners to apply modern equipment in fisheries exploitation such as Sonar fishfinder and promote the mechanisation in the fishing and net collection stages which aims at increasing the exploitation efficiency and reducing the number of employees on the fishing vessel.

“In the short term, we are suggesting localities to have support policies for fishermen to change their jobs to ease their concern over income and livelihood.

“Special attention should be paid to reducing the pressure on exploitation in coastal areas,” Cuong said.

Le Cam Long, head of Bo Trach District Agriculture and Rural Development subdepartment said, in order for the fisheries to develop sustainably as well as bring adequate income to people, local authority was directing communes to restructure the occupation accordingly, expanding the fishing grounds to the Truong Sa area to catch more valuable fish while reducing the pressure of exploitation in the Gulf of Tonkin at the same time.

Tran Nhu Long, Deputy Director of Fisheries Sub-Department of Nghe An Province said in the longterm, it was necessary to take measures to regenerate resources in the direction of both exploitation and protection due to declining marine resources.

“Only when the aquatic resources is well regenerated, people enjoy exploitation and have better income, people will engage with the marine again,” he said.

Le Ngoc Linh, Director of the Fisheries Sub-Department of Quang Binh Province proposed the Government study more practical and long-term policies such as banning sailing the sea during the fish breeding season and providing fuel for fishermen.

More attention should be paid to dissemination work, calling on fishermen not to change their jobs, increase labour productivity and get training on how to exploit marine resources effectively.

VNS