Vietnam accuses China of attack on fishermen in South China Sea

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam has accused China of opening fire on a fishing boat in the disputed South China Sea and burning down its cabin, charges denied by Beijing on Tuesday as tensions resurface over sovereignty in the energy-rich waters.

Claims by an increasingly powerful China over most of the South China Sea have set it directly against U.S. allies Vietnam and the Philippines. Brunei, Taiwan and Malaysia also claim parts of the waters and China has a separate dispute with Japan in the East China Sea.