Vietnam seeks seized boats

Vietnam seeks seized boats

HANOI (Reuters): A province of central Vietnam is seeking the return of more than 200 fishermen and 17 fishing boats seized by foreign vessels around the disputed Spratly and Paracel Islands, Vietnam's official media reported on Saturday.

The Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper quoted authorities in Quang Ngai province as saying the Vietnamese vessels and fishermen had been seized by "foreign boats" but did not identify which country those boats came from or give any timeframe.

It said the province had proposed that the government and Foreign Ministry intervene to resolve the issue.

The report said the Vietnamese trawlers and fishermen came from Ly Son Island off Quang Ngai and had been fishing around the Spratly and Paracel archipelagos, which are also claimed by Vietnam's giant northern neighbor China.