Vietnamplus

Indonesian and US navies are conducting an annual sea surveillance manoeuvre in Batam waters from April 6-10 to enhance the capacity of the Indonesian Task Force.

The ambassadors of ASEAN countries to South Africa voiced their worry over recent tensions in the East Sea at a meeting in the capital Pretoria on May 13.

China must withdraw its oil rig from Vietnam’s waters and seek a diplomatic and peaceful solution to disputes in the East Sea, Ezequiel Ramoneda, coordinator of the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies at Argentina’s National University of La Plata, has said.

The ambassadors of many countries to Belgium have shared the view that China’s installation of its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou - 981 in Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone is a wrongful act which should be condemned.

Vietnamese fine artists have called on their fellows worldwide, including Chinese, to take prompt actions condemning China’s illegal placement of its oil rig deep in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

China recently intentionally misquoted a diplomatic letter of late Prime Minister Pham Van Dong, addressed to China on September 14, 1958, with the aim of distorting the truth of Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos, the Government news portal said on May 25.

The Vietnamese communities in Sweden and Canada on May 25 held peace rallies to protest China’s illegal placement of the oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

China still maintained over 90 vessels of various kinds around its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou – 981 which is illegally standing in Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone, reported the Vietnam Coast Guard on May 19.

Members of the Mexico – Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Group (MVFFG) and Mexican Chamber of Deputies have expressed their support to Vietnam’s legitimate rights and criticised China’s wrongful acts in Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone.

The White House said on May 14 that the tension caused by China’s illegal placement of its oil rig about 120 miles off Vietnam's coast needs to be resolved through dialogue, not intimidation.

Australia, Singapore and organisations based in Mongolia and the UK have expressed their deep concern over China’s illegal dispatch of its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 and ships to Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone.

The US Department of State has affirmed that any member of the global community has the right to express concern over China ’s provocative acts, which have triggered tensions in the East Sea.

The Ex-Youth Volunteers’ Association and the Truong Son – Ho Chi Minh Trail Tradition Association have vehemently denounced China’s illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the East Sea.

About 250 overseas Vietnamese in Bulgaria gathered at a meeting on May 13 to protest China ’s illegal placement of its Haiyang Shiyou-981 oil rig in Vietnam ’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

The Vietnamese community in Malaysia on May 15 issued a statement vehemently opposing China’s illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone.

The executive board of the Vietnamese Association in the UK at a meeting on May 14 expressed their support to the Vietnamese Government in safeguarding the country’s sovereignty and rebuked China for violating Vietnam’s waters.

A Belgian journalist has stated that the world community is turning back on China over its illegal dispatch of oil rig Haiyang Shiyou – 981 in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf.

Ships of the Vietnam Coast Guard and Fisheries Surveillance Force have persistently stayed at the site of China’s Haiyang Shiyou-981 oil rig to demand its withdrawal out of Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf as well as to ensure safety for Vietnamese fishermen operating in the area.