Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has warned the territorial dispute in the East Sea will disrupt the large flow of cargo transportation across the sea, and may reverse the course of the global economic recovery.

Addressing the World Economic Forum on East Asia in Manila on May 22, Dung stressed that territorial disputes in the East Sea and East China Sea are getting more complicated, seriously threatening regional peace, stability and security.

He said three quarters of the global commodities are transported by sea, of which two thirds pass through the East Sea. Instability or dispute there will impede maritime transport and take its toll on many regional and global economies.

He briefed the meeting on the recent tension in the East Sea, describing it as critically serious. He said China on May 1, 2014 placed its drilling rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 deep inside Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the East Sea prescribed in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). China has so far deployed a total of more than 130 vessels, including military ships, and airplanes to the area to protect its oil rig.

This is a serious violation of international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, and the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) to which China is a signatory, Dung said, adding this act directly threatens peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea.

The PM said as a peace-loving nation Vietnam has exercised restraint and shown goodwill, using every dialogue channel to protest against and ask China to immediately withdraw its rig and escort vessels from Vietnam’s territorial waters and fully observe international law.

China has failed to respond to Vietnam’s legitimate request; it even made accusations and intensified acts of intimidation against Vietnam.

China’s move has sparked outrage among Vietnamese people who staged spontaneous demonstrations and committed law violations in several localities. However, the government promptly interfered and duly punished law-breakers. The situation was stabilised, and businesses resumed operation as normal.

PM Dung thanked ASEAN, other countries and international friends for joining hands and supporting Vietnam in protecting its sovereignty and legitimate interests in accordance with international law.

He called for additional international support, which he said is crucial to preventing acts of international law violation.

At the opening session, many delegates raised concern about territorial disputes in the East Sea and the East China Sea, and said peace and stability is the prerequisite for ensuring cooperation and development in the region.

They called on parties concerned to tackle the disputes through peaceful means, in accordance with international law, without resorting to threat or use of force, as well as avoiding additional provocation to further complicate the situation.

PM Nguyen Tan Dung encourages foreign businesses to invest in Vietnam

The same day, PM Dung attended and delivered a speech at a session on the role of the private-public partnership (PPP) model in building the ASEAN Economic Community.

He said during international integration, PPP cooperation presents numerous opportunities, but poses challenges to all countries. For ASEAN, he said the grouping needs to make full use of this cooperation model, in infrastructure construction for instance, to support the Initiative for ASEAN Integration (IAI).  

To this end, he called for strong support from member states in developing a common PPP policy framework and a list of ASEAN Connectivity projects, as well as cost-effective supervisory mechanisms to ensure these projects are successful.

The PM also held a dialogue with WEF business representatives who are keen to explore Vietnam’s investment environment.

He said the country is accelerating economic restructuring, renovating its growth model, and finalising the market economic institution.

Dung briefed businesses on Vietnam’s future prospects, and the country is making constant effort to improve its investment environment, thus facilitating foreign operations in the country.