Recently, China continued to carry out activities in Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) area, specifically: Chinese Oil Company invited bids for 19 blocks in the northern East Sea, one nautical mile from the Tree Island of the Hoang Sa Archipelago. On March 2, China’s coast guard ship 11 conducted a live ammunition drill on territorial waters belonging to the Hoang Sa Archipelago.

On March 7, Deputy Head of the China National Tourism Administration talked about cooperation between the administration and Hainan province’s administration in expanding tourism activities on the Hoang Sa Archipelago. The Chinese side also conducted a series of activities in violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty.

In response to China’s actions, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Luong Thanh Nghi affirmed that Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos are two indispensable parts of the country’s sovereignty. China’s activities have seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa and international law, running counter to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) signed in 2002 between ASEAN and China, as well as being detrimental to the development of friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and China.

(Source: VOV)