Hanoi: Vietnam has criticised China for violating its sovereignty by planning to claim administrative control over two disputed archipelagos in the South China Sea, state media reported today.

China and Vietnam have argued for years over the Paracels and the Spratlys. Largely uninhabited, the island chains are believed to be rich in oil and natural gas. They straddle busy sea lanes and are rich fishing grounds.

The Chinese People's Congress, China's Parliament, recently ratified a plan to create a symbolic administrative region called Sansha to manage three archipelagos, including the Paracels and the Spratlys, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

"This act violates Vietnam's sovereignty ... And is detrimental to the process of negotiation to find durable solutions to solve the maritime issues between the two countries," the report cited Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Dung as saying yesterday.

Dung said Vietnam has solid historical evidence and a firm legal foundation to claim sovereignty over the archipelagos, and asserted that all disputes should be settled through peaceful negotiations.

At a regular briefing today, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said China has "indisputable sovereignty" over the islands, and that it was not exceeding its territorial limits.

"Any accusation against China is groundless," Qin said. "We cannot accept those accusations." Taiwan, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei also claim sovereignty over all or some of the Spratly Islands. 

Source : PTI