A mobile exhibition giving visitors an insight into the historical and legal evidence proving Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos was opened in Huong Hoa district, the central province of Quang Tri on July 1.
Vietnam has affirmed its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago and requested China to investigate the incident involving the acts of Chinese vessels against a Vietnamese fishing boat in the archipelago’s waters on June 10.
Countries need to act responsibly in the East Sea, not complicate the situation, and contribute to preserving peace and security in the waters, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang has said.
Vice Spokesman of the Foreign Ministry Doan Khac Viet on May 28 repeated that all activities without Vietnam’s permission in the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos are valueless.
Favourable weather, low oil prices and bumper catch on the horizon have fishermen eager to sail out to their traditional fishing grounds off the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagoes. For them, this not only about makinig a living, but also asserting sovereignty over the country’s seas and islands.
In the Vietnamese version of the book “Maps”, the drawing of Vietnam’s territory includes clear illustrations of Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly), showing the country’s sovereignty over these two archipelagoes in the East Sea.
The Vietnam Fisheries Society (VINAFIS) released a document on May 4 opposing China’s issuance of regulations banning fishing in the East Sea this year.
China’s maritime claims and recent actions in the East Sea ran counter to the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS 1982), according to an expert on the East Sea issue.
Foreign experts have condemned China’s recent actions in the East Sea, saying its moves have escalated tensions in the region and infringed upon international law.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on April 23 criticised recent actions of China in the East Sea, including its announcement of the establishment of “Xisha district” (Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago) and “Nansha district” (Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago) within the so-called “Sansha city,” and China coast guard vessel's sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat.
China’s circulation of a number of diplomatic notes at the United Nations (UN) that raise unreasonable sovereignty claims over Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos as well as maritime claims in the East Sea runs counter to the provisions of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), an official said on April 23.
Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Toshimitsu Motegi has voiced his concerns over China’s establishment of districts to administer the Paracel (Vietnam’s Hoang Sa archipelago) and Spratly islands (Vietnam’s Truong Sa archipelago) in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), Japan’s Kyodo News reported.
China’s announcement of the establishment of the so-called “Xisha district” (Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago) and “Nansha district” (Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago) within the new “Sansha city” will escalate tensions in the region, a Russian researcher on Vietnamese studies has said.
China’s announcement of the establishment of the so-called “Xisha district” (Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago) and “Nansha district" (Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago) under “Sansha city” is “a provocation, illegal under international law,” said Professor Carl Thayer from Australia’s University of New South Wales on April 19.
Vietnam strongly protests the establishment of the so-called “Sansha city” and related acts as they seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty, the spokesperson of Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry Le Thi Thu Hang said on April 19.
Vietnam has taken correct and timely action on the East Sea issue by sending a diplomatic note to the UN Secretary General to oppose China's claim over the East Sea and assert Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos, according to Russian international law researchers and experts.
Life of people on Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago has been improved since national liberation in 1975 thanks to efforts from both the army and people on its islands.
US Senator Jim Risch, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, along with three others, namely Bob Menendez, Cory Gardner and Ed Markey, on April 11 criticised the Chinese Coast Guard’s recent sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat in Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago waters in the East Sea.
The US Department of Defence issued a statement on April 9 expressing its deep concern over a Chinese coast guard's collision with and sinking of a Vietnamese fishing vessel near Vietnam's Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago in the East Sea.
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