For seventy-five days starting from May 2, China unilaterally deployed its US$1 billion oil rig HYSY-981 to drill in waters lying within Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The platform was originally scheduled to stay until August 15, but on July 15, China announced that the rig had completed its work and would be relocated to Hainan Island. The removal of the drilling rig is as unilateral and unexpected as its deployment. When the platform was parked in the contested area, it sparked the worst crisis since 1988 in Sino-Vietnamese relations.
A Tacit Bargain
We do not know whether or not a secret deal was struck, but what we do know might indicate a tacit bargain took place. While Chinese and Vietnamese ships played cat and mouse near the controversial oil rig, Hanoi’s leaders sought to negotiate with Beijing, which replied with four preconditions for talks. The first was that Vietnam must stop harassing China’s oil rig and vessels. Second, Vietnam must not dispute China’s ownership of the Paracel Islands. The third condition was that Vietnam must not pursue legal proceedings against China’s claims and actions in the South China Sea. And finally, Vietnam must not involve third parties, particularly the United States and the West, in this bilateral issue.
The first two conditions were politically impossible for any government in Hanoi to meet. But Hanoi made two decisions that signaled its bow to the other two. Despite a large campaign in the state-owned media and strong calls from several corners for taking Beijing to court, Vietnam’s collective leadership decided not to file legal actions against China. They also postponed a trip by Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh to the United States, which was initially approved and scheduled for June after Minh’s May 21 phone call with his U.S. counterpart John Kerry. China’s removal of the drilling rig and its release of the Vietnamese fishermen can be interpreted as a reciprocal act of deescalation.
Did China Blink in the South China Sea? 
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