(VOVworld) – 100 scholars from French universities and research centers, attended a seminar entitled “The situation in Southeast Asia and the East Sea” hosted by the Strategic-Research Institute of the French Military Academy (IRSEM) in Paris on Thursday. Speaking at the seminar, Professor Rommel Banlaoi, head of the Philippines’ Center for Intelligence and National Security Studies, warned of deteriorating security since China destabilized the East Sea by placing oil rig Haiyang 981 in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. He said China’s acts violate international agreements it has signed, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC). He stressed that China must respect its commitments while ASEAN countries should show their solidarity as only solidarity and cooperation can resolve the East Sea tension. He added that Vietnamese people’s patriotism and determination to protect their national sovereignty has grown stronger and China needs to understand that Vietnam has never backed away from defending its sovereignty and national interests.  

Speaking on the sidelines of the seminar, Professor Marie-Sybille de Vienne of France’s Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO) in Paris, voiced her concern that China is ready to do anything to show that it has become a super power and can do whatever it wants, certain that the ASEAN countries lack the means to respond.  She said China should be responsible and peacefully settle the current issues.