China’s Naval Dragons Go Off Leash?

Via Media: 

China is making waves again, this time by allegedly firing on a Vietnamese fishing boat in the South China Sea. Reuters reports:

A statement posted on the Vietnamese government’s website said the trawler was chased away and came under attack from Chinese ships near the Paracel islands on March 20, calling the incident a breach of international maritime law.

The hydrocarbon-rich South China Sea has plenty of countries lined up to stake their claims. This incident occurred near the Paracel islands, claimed by Taiwan, Vietnam and China. These islands don’t have any hydrocarbon reserves of their own, but that hasn’t stopped China from antagonizing the various claimants in the past.

Update: This morning, the WSJ reported that China sent four ships to a disputed reef off the coast of Malaysia.