(VOVworld) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung delivered an important speech about security challenges in Asia before German parliamentarians and scholars during his visit to Germany. The speech, which focused on instability in the East Sea, has attracted the attention of many German newspapers and scholars.

Doctor Gerhard Will, an expert of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs granted an interview on Prime Minister Dung’s speech to the Vietnam News Agency. He said the speech pointed out East Sea disputes could be resolved only in accordance with international law with a multilateral solution. Prime Minister Dung’s stance conforms with Germany and Europe’s policy of settling East Sea disputes through peaceful and multilateral measures in line with international law. Doctor Gerhard Will said the German government and the EU can possibly include the East Sea issue in the agenda of international forums or multilateral cooperative mechanisms as they mentioned at the just concluded 10^th ASEM Summit in Milan, Italy. Germany and the EU can also support specific solutions to the East Sea situation proposed by Vietnam or other related ASEAN countries.

Concerning China’s construction of an artificial island near the Johnson Reef of Vietnam’s Truong Sa archipelago, Doctor Gerhard Will said China had violated the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea it signed in 2002, in which parties concerned committed not to unilaterally breaking the status quo of disputed areas. He said the move could cause economic losses to China and worsen its relations with ASEAN countries, which would result in negative impacts on China’s economic growth and rise.