New Delhi: In what may weaken Vietnam’s case in its dispute with China over the South China Sea, India’s ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) wants to exit hydrocarbon block No.128 and swap its stake with another block in the South-East Asian nation.
China and Vietnam are among several countries having competing claims over the South China Sea and islands in the region. Tensions have flared in the past between the two nations over the Spratly and Paracel Islands. Also, China, which disputes Vietnam’s sovereignty over the waters in the South China Sea, had earlier objected to the presence of an Indian vessel surveying the area.
“OVL doesn’t want to drill there given the risks involved. It has requested to swap the block with some other block,” said one person aware of the development, requesting anonymity.
