China and Vietnam, which have territorial disputes in the South China Sea, share a bittersweet relationship fraught with confrontation and cooperation. The two countries may be close trading partners, but thirty-seven years ago, they fought a bloody battle that still haunts Hanoi.
In a recent development, Vietnam is reportedly inching closer to purchasing Chinese-made regional passenger aircraft two weeks after they locked horns. Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha has directed the Ministry of Transportation to suggest legislative amendments that would “facilitate the certification” of the C909 narrowbody jet.
If it goes through, the purchase would be a big boost to China’s indigenous commercial aircraft industry, especially at a time when Beijing is looking to make its mark in the international aviation market. It also complements the overall trading relationship between the two countries, with Beijing being Hanoi’s largest trading partner.
But does this mean all is well between China and Vietnam?
Despite their robust economic relationship, China and Vietnam remain embroiled in a protracted territorial conflict in the South China Sea. Both countries claim sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly Islands, both of which are believed to be strategically significant and rich in natural resources, including oil and natural gas.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea as its sovereign territory based on the Nine-Dash Line, a delineation that spans over 90% of the sea. It is regularly accused of bullying and intimidating other regional players with overlapping claims, which include Vietnam and other nations like Brunei, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
China has long pursued the policy of enlarging already-existing islands in the South China Sea and even constructing new ones for military objectives.
China and Vietnam sporadically lock horns at sea, much like the Chinese and the Filipino sides. In September 2024, officers from China’s Maritime Safety Administration reportedly boarded Vietnamese fishing vessels near the Paracel Islands and beat up 10 Vietnamese fishermen.
Duan Dang, a marine security analyst, told USNI News that “China’s aggressive tactics extend to regularly deploying survey vessels into Vietnamese waters, exerting undue pressure on Vietnam to halt its legitimate oil and gas projects within its own exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. Moreover, China often threatens and attacks Vietnamese fishermen.”
Besides Spratly and Paracel Islands, China opened another front last year when it officially disclosed a new baseline outlining its territorial claims in the northern part of the Gulf of Tonkin. Vietnam hit back in February 2025 when it announced it was marking a baseline used to calculate the width of its territorial waters in the Gulf of Tonkin.
In retaliation, fiery Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces launched military drills in the Beibu Gulf area, closer to the Chinese side of the Gulf of Tonkin. Thus, making it evident that tensions between the two countries continue.
The conflict, however, goes back decades and, at least on one occasion, led to a bloodbath at a reef called Johnson South Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands.
Johnson South Reef Conflict, 1988
The period towards the end of the Vietnam War was dominated by tensions between China and Vietnam over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. In 1974, the two sides had already fought a conflict at the Paracel Islands.
As the Vietnam War came to a close, the South Vietnamese navy attempted to drive the Chinese navy out of the region, which eventually led to a bloody battle. At least 100 Vietnamese soldiers were killed. After the end of the conflict, China occupied the part of the island that was controlled by South Vietnam and established full de facto control over it.
Since China had sweeping claims over another territory in the contested sea—the Spratly Islands—it became the next big flashpoint between the two countries. Even though China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei have overlapping claims over the Spratly, only Vietnamese and Chinese forces waged a battle for one of its reefs in 1988.
About 37 years ago, on March 14, 1988, Chinese People’s Liberation Navy (PLAN) forces and Vietnamese troops clashed at the Johnson South in the South China Sea. The battle went down in history as a short but bloody battle.
A collection of more than 100 islands, rocks, reefs, and other features in the South China Sea, Johnson South Reef lies roughly 500 miles west of Vietnam’s southern coast. On March 13, 1988, the People’s Army of Vietnam (PAVN) placed a small Vietnamese flag on the Reef.
Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) personnel began inspecting the Johnson South Reef in late 1987 to bolster Chinese territorial claims in the area. Soon after, the PAVN members started following suit. The two sides were now face-to-face at one of the most fiercely contested reefs near Spratly.
The gist of the conflict is that Vietnamese forces erected their flag at the Johnson South Reef on March 13, 1988. The incident outraged the PLA forces. The following day, on March 14, 1988, a PLA naval crew started for the reef to tear the flag down.
Nevertheless, this battle has several varying versions. According to China, Vietnam sent three different vessels towards Johnson South Reef, Landsdowne Reef, and Collins Reef for a three-pronged intrusion.
China maintains that while the Vietnamese vessels were threatened by the PLAN forces to leave, they defied all warnings and decided to erect their flag over the Johnson South Reef, leading to a skirmish at all three reefs. The Chinese claim that the Vietnamese were the first to open fire.
The Vietnam Net Global website states another version (one that is accepted by Vietnam): “In early March 1988, three transport ships, HQ 604, HQ 605, and HQ 505, were ordered to take soldiers to the Spratly Islands to build some works on the Johnson South Reef. On the morning of March 14, 1988, when the Vietnamese soldiers were carrying construction materials to Johnson South Reef, Chinese warships appeared. Chinese soldiers shot Vietnamese soldiers. 64 Vietnamese naval soldiers died, nine others were taken prisoners.”
It further adds, “The HQ 604 ship was shot and sunk near the Johnson South Reef while the HQ 605 ship sunk near the Lansdowne Reef. The HQ 505 ship was shot at the tail. It ran at full speed to the beach of Collins Reef, becoming a landmark in protecting the sovereignty of Vietnam on Collins Reef. Vietnam kept the Collins Reef and Lansdowne Reef while Johnson South Reef was illegally occupied by China since then.”
In addition to this, a declassified CIA document states that “a Chinese naval party went ashore on the unoccupied reef to conduct surveys, establish observation posts, and erect a Chinese flag. However, the Vietnamese supply ships monitoring the Chinese activity responded by landing troops on the reef, and they initiated the clash.”
It states that an acrimonious exchange ensued, with one of the Vietnamese ships opening fire and wounding one of the PLAN soldiers. Following this, a Vietnamese supply ship, which was armed with a machine gun, opened fire on one of the Chinese vessels offshore.
Having said that, in the 1988 conflict, the Vietnam People’s Navy’s landing craft and troop transports were up against the PLA Navy’s three frigates, Nanchong, Xiangtan, and Yingtan. Thus, the outcome was predetermined. These sluggish, weakly armed ships would not have a chance against the swift, well-armed Chinese warships.
While different versions exist, it is a very sensitive topic for the people of Vietnam and represents one of the worst incidents of China’s high-handedness. Every year since then, the Vietnamese public has held ceremonies to honor the fallen soldiers.
The reef has also undergone a massive transformation. Until early 2014, Johnson South Reef was a 7.2-square-kilometre submerged reef in the Union Banks. However, now more than 100,000 square meters of area and a sea castle have been added to this reef. A 400-meter-wide island now sits where there was formerly only a little concrete platform and communications center.
Beijing has increased its presence in the region by reclaiming the land surrounding the Johnson South Reef and constructing artificial islands, including airstrips that might accommodate military aircraft.
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