Over 3,000 Chinese evacuated from Vietnam after anti-China riots

BEIJING: China began evacuating hundreds of its nationals from Vietnam after this week's anti-China riots targeting many factories in protest against Beijing's attempt to deploy an oil drill in the disputed South China Sea waters.

More than 3,000 Chinese nationals have been evacuated so far from Vietnam after the recent deadly violence, China's Foreign Ministry said today.

They returned to China with the assistance of Chinese Embassy to Vietnam, the Foreign Ministry said in a press release.

China says two of its nationals were killed in the violence and more than 100 others injured while the official death toll was put at 21.

Tensions prevailed between Vietnam and China after Beijing deployed an oil rig off the disputed waters in South China Sea on May 1.

Since then naval vessels of both the countries rammed hundreds of times into each other.

The dispute was part of wider row between China and a number of south-east Asian countries including Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.

An iron and steel complex in Ha Tinh Province of Vietnam, invested by Taipei-based Formosa Plastics Group, was badly hit in the violent attacks triggered by disputes in the South China Sea.

The China 19th Metallurgical Corporation (MCC19) is a contractor for construction of the plant, state run Xinhua news agency reported.

The Chinese government is arranging for chartered plane and vessel to take back the staff of MCC19, according to the Foreign Ministry.

The staff members, from the China 19th Metallurgical Corporation (MCC19), arrived at the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport in southwest China's Sichuan Province at about 5 am (local time).

They were greeted by Zhong Mian, executive vice governor of Sichuan.