A Chinese vessel fired on a Vietnamese fishing boat in the South China Sea and set its cabin on fire on March 20, Vietnamese authorities said March 26, AP reported.

The Taiwanese coast guard announced March 1 that it would stage a live-fire exercise near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, PTI reported.

China has indisputable sovereignty over the Xisha Islands and their adjacent waters, and other claims to sovereignty of the islands are illegal and invalid, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, the Liberation Army Daily reported Jan. 2.

China told Vietnam on Dec. 6 to stop unilateral oil exploration in disputed areas of the South China Sea and to not harass Chinese fishing boats, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said, Reuters reported.

Vietnam is set to sign an agreement to establish a free trade zone with the countries of the Russia-led Customs Union, The Voice of Russia reported Nov. 7.

Trade ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations -- along with counterparts from China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia and New Zealand