Vietnam has taken correct and timely action on the East Sea issue by sending a diplomatic note to the UN Secretary General to oppose China's claim over the East Sea and assert Vietnam’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos, according to Russian international law researchers and experts.

Russian international security expert Grigory Trofimchuk (Photo: VNA)

Professor Vladimir Kolotov from Saint Petersburg University stressed that Vietnam’s act proves it is a responsible member of the international community and that the country is protecting its national interests in line with the UN Charter and the norms of international law.

The Russian expert reiterated that when elected to the position of a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, Vietnam received a record number of supporting votes.

This shows Vietnam's increasing international reputation, he said, adding that 2020 offers a series of opportunities for Vietnam to deploy effective diplomatic activities within the UN and ASEAN, contributing to making the world a safer and fairer place.

Sharing Kolotov’s opinion, Grigory Trofimchuk, an international security expert, said the East Sea is not only an issue for Vietnam-China relations or Southeast Asia, it is also an important issue for the UN.

He said in the coming time, after the COVID-19 pandemic is controlled, a large international conference on the East Sea issue should be organised.

Without any mechanism to prevent a global conflict originating in the region, the international community should find a solution to the issue, he noted.

The Russian experts highly appreciated Vietnam's role in strengthening intra-bloc solidarity in ASEAN as well as in consolidating the bloc’s position.

Kolotov said as the Chair of ASEAN 2020, Vietnam can enhance its role by promoting solidarity in the region.

For his part, Trofimchuk said ASEAN is not only an economic organisation, but also a political organisation and has an overwhelming advantage over many other organisations operating in the region.

The East Sea issue is in the area of direct responsibility of ASEAN, so this organisation should be at the forefront of implementing its efforts to stabilise the situation.

As the host country for the ASEAN Summit 2020, and a directly relevant party of the East Sea issue, Vietnam is expected to make specific proposals to resolve this issue, he said.

Vietnam's stance is extremely important, he stressed, confirming that the basis for resolving East Sea-related issues is peace and through political and diplomatic negotiations.

While answering international reporters’ queries about the issue on April 9, spokeswoman of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang emphasised that Vietnam's consistent stance is resolving disputes in the East Sea through peaceful means on the basis of international law as defined in the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS 1982).

The viewpoint was clearly and fully expressed in a diplomatic note recently sent by the Vietnam Permanent Mission to the UN, Hang said, adding that circulating such a note at the UN is a normal procedure.