Nearly 100 French scholars
and professors gathered in Paris on June 25 to address the East Sea dispute and
its ramifications on security in the Southeast Asian region.
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The conference in Paris on June 25
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Speaking at the event,
Professor Rommel Banlaoi from Miriam University warned that the placement of
Haiyang Shiyou-981 inside Vietnam’s Exclusive Economic Zone and continental
shelf has sent a wave of insecurity rippling throughout the region.
It is unequivocally
undeniable that China has committed serious violations of international
agreements, he said citing specifically transgressions of the 1982 United
Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2002 ASEAN-China
Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).
Further, he said, taken as
a whole China’s actions collectively serve to concretise its desire for
transgressing all the East Sea through the groundless claim of the 'nine-dash
line' or 'U-shaped line'.
He emphasised that the use
or threat of force will only serve to heighten current tensions in the East Sea
and create additional negative consequences and that the relevant parties need
to resolve the dispute peacefully through diplomacy and dialogue.
China must respect its
international commitments and ASEAN countries must be united as only solidarity
and cooperation can settle the tensions in the East Sea, he remarked.
Vietnamese people’s
patriotism and determination to protect the national sovereignty is becoming
stronger and stronger and China should be aware that Vietnam will never step
back in protecting national sovereignty and interests, professor Banlaoi said.
Although the European Union
has issued a statement on the East Sea, the professor said the statement was
not in line with the organisation’s strength to take a stance.
If there is no stronger
voice and action, EU interests in the region will be negatively affected and
China will meet its goal in the East Sea, he said.
Marie-Sybille de Vienne
from the National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations
(INALCO) in Paris expressed her concern over China’s actions.
China must show its
responsibility for lessening current tensions and look towards peaceful means
for resolving disputes, she said.
Source: VOV
