(VOVWORLD) - The Belgium-Vietnam Friendship Association on Monday affirmed its backing for Vietnam’s stance on legitimate sovereignty in the South China Sea (known as the East Sea in Vietnam).
Regarding Vietnam’s request that China end activities violating Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea, Association President Pierre Grega said that China’s claims of sovereignty over almost the entire East Sea run counter to the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
In response to reporters’ question about Vietnam’s position regarding Chinese ships operating at Ba Dau Reef in Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said China must end its violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea.
She said the operation of Chinese ships in the Spratly Archipelago violates Vietnam’s sovereignty and UNCLOS’s stipulation on the operation of foreign vessels in the territorial waters of coastal nations, runs counter to the spirit and content of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), and complicates negotiations between ASEAN and China on a Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (COC).
Vietnam demands that China respect Vietnam’s sovereignty, implement UNCLOS with good will, and comply with the DOC, especially the obligation of self-restraint so as not to complicate the situation and to create a favorable environment for the COC negotiation.