China’s construction of two lighthouses on an island and a reef in the Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago in the East Vietnam Sea has seriously infringed upon Vietnam’s sovereignty over the group of islands, according to the Vietnamese foreign ministry.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Le Hai Binh made the statement on Wednesday, in reply to reporters’ questions on the fact that China has erected two lighthouses on Duy Mong (Drummond) Island and Hai Sam (Antelope) Reef in the Luoi Liem (Crescent) cluster, part of Hoang Sa.
“Vietnam has many times rejected the so-called ‘Sansha City,’ and the declaration of the so-called ‘administration of Sansha City’ on completing the building of the two lighthouses in Hoang Sa is a severe violation of Vietnam’s sovereignty over the archipelago,” the spokesman said.
The lighthouse construction also goes against international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Vietnam Sea (DOC) signed between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2002, escalating tension and seriously threatening peace and stability in the region, he underlined.
Vietnam once again requests China respect its sovereignty and international law, abide by the DOC, and immediately stop wrongful actions, Binh said.
The Vietnamese foreign ministry has repeatedly reiterated that Vietnam has full legal and historical evidence to prove its indisputable sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa (Spratlys) in the East Vietnam Sea.
Any activities conducted there by other countries without agreement from Vietnam are illegal and null and void, the ministry said.
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