Vietnam has filed its Submission on the Limits of the Extended Continental Shelf Beyond 200 Nautical Miles in respect of the Central Area of the East Sea to the United Nations (UN), according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, and a Ministry of Foreign Affairs delegation led by Ambassador Trinh Duc Hai, vice-chairman of the National Boundary Commission, presented the submission to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) at the UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday.

On the same day, the foreign ministry issued a statement regarding the submission.

Vietnam’s submission on the extended continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles, after other relevant coastal states in the East Vietnam Sea have submitted their own submissions since 2019, is to exercise the rights and obligations of states parties to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), as provided in Article 76 of the convention to which Vietnam is party, the statement says.  

Accordingly, when a coastal state has a continental shelf extending beyond 200 nautical miles from the baseline from which the breadth of the territorial sea is measured, the coastal state shall submit relevant information and data to the CLCS for consideration and recommendations on the limits of the extended continental shelf.

Vietnam affirms that its submission is without prejudice to maritime delimitation between Vietnam and other relevant coastal states in the East Vietnam Sea based on UNCLOS, according to the statement.

This submission is Vietnam’s third to have been presented to the CLCS.

In May 2009, Vietnam filed its own submission on the extended continental shelf in respect of the north area of the East Vietnam Sea, and a joint submission with Malaysia on the extended continental shelf in respect of the southern part of the same waterway, according to the statement.

In the Note Verbale delivered to the CLCS at that time, Vietnam affirmed that it would submit a submission on the extended continental shelf in respect of the central area of the East Vietnam Sea at a later date. 

The statement also included Vietnam’s reiteration of its sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracels) Islands and Truong Sa (Spratlys) under international law in the East Vietnam Sea, and the rights over its maritime zones in the same waters established in accordance with UNCLOS. 

Vietnam is committed to being ready to resolve and manage all disputes and differences over territorial sovereignty related to Hoang Sa and Truong Sa, as well as maritime delimitation between Vietnam and relevant coastal states in the East Vietnam Sea, by peaceful means, according to the statement. 

Hanoi also pledges to join other countries in the region and the international community to maintain peace, stability, security, safety, freedom of navigation and overflight, and sustainable development in the East Vietnam Sea in accordance with international law, including UNCLOS.

On this occasion, Ambassador Giang and the delegation of the Vietnamese foreign ministry expressed their gratitude for the UN’s support for Vietnam in its filing of the submissions in line with relevant regulations of the UNCLOS and CLCS.

Also on Wednesday, the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to the UN sent a Note Verbale to UN Secretary General António Guterres to state Vietnam’s position on the Philippines’ submission on the limits of the extended continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles in the East Vietnam Sea on June 14, 2024.

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