China urges better ties with Vietnam, as anger mounts over Xi’s visit

HANOI: Chinese President Xi Jinping Thursday said he hoped for a “higher level” partnership with Vietnam on a visit that has angered Vietnamese nationalists at a time of bubbling conflict over the South China Sea.

The communist neighbours have long celebrated their political and economic ties but in recent years tensions have flared over a decades-old feud about island chains in the contested waters.

On arriving in Hanoi, Xi said he hoped the visit would “consolidate (their) traditional friendship” and lift Sino-Vietnamese “cooperation to a higher level” in a statement.

The Chinese leader was welcomed with a 21-gun salute before being greeted by ruling Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong, who described the visit — the first by a Chinese president in 10 years — as having “a very significant meaning”.

A statement later put out by Vietnam’s Communist Party said the two states “are exerting efforts to well control and considerably solve disputes at sea”.

Hours before Xi arrived less welcoming scenes played out in small but rare protests on the streets of Hanoi and southern Ho Chi Minh City.

“Protesting Xi Jinping’s visit” said one of the placards held aloft by about a dozen demonstrators in the capital, as others carried pictures of Xi marked with an “X” across his image.

Posts on social media said around 20 people were detained in Ho Chi Minh City after a larger anti-China protest, with a video showing a bloodied demonstrator after clashes with police.