Vietnam steadfastly resolves to find a non-violent and peaceful solution to the East Sea territorial dispute that is amenable to both sides, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son has said.

Addressing a June 3 seminar in Brussels, Belgium, Son briefed attendees, principally from the European Union (EU), on the latest developments in the East Sea, following China’s illegal placement of the Haiyang Shiyou-981 drilling oil rig in Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and continental shelf.

Son stressed that China’s acts are an egregious violation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to which China was a signatory. He said they are also a flagrant breach of the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and represent an ongoing threat to security and maritime safety in the region.

Son thanked the international community, and particularly Belgium and EU, for raising their voices in unison with Vietnam and condemning China’s transgressions in the East Sea.

He said Vietnam has always attached great importance to developing strong trade and investment with the EU, and it strives to create optimum conditions to that end. He expressed his hope that Vietnam and EU will soon reach a free trade agreement to elevate trade and investment ties.

On behalf of EU parliamentarians, Marc Tarabella who is in charge of ASEAN at the European Parliament voiced his concern about the current tensions in East Sea, and the negative spillover effect it is having on world trade.

Tarabella affirmed that the EU is willing to serve as an intermediary to assist the parties in resolving the dispute diplomatically and negotiating an acceptable solution agreement.

Chairman of the Belgium-Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry Huynh Trang Long also mirrored Tarabella’s concerns that the East Sea tensions are having a seriously detrimental effect on world trade development.

Attendees at the seminar were unanimous in their conviction that if tensions in the East Sea are not deescalated in a timely, peaceful and lawful manner, world trade will suffer adverse consequences.

VOV/VNN