China's marine patrol notes foreign offshore oil rigs

(Ecns.cn)—Chinese vessels the "Haijian 80" and "Haijian 75" are now returning from their third mission patrolling the waters the country administers in the South China Sea, announced China National Radio on Monday.

The two ships set sail from Guangzhou, the capital city of South China's Guangdong Province, and patrolled southern coastal waters along to the furthest point designated near 3 degrees north latitude.

The ships noticed several foreign off-shore oil rigs operating in waters China claims sovereignty over. Following the current policy, the marine forces identified themselves and kept records of these oil rigs' activities.

This mission was carried out by China Marine Surveillance, the country's maritime law enforcement authorities, in accordance with Chinese law.