Vietnam’s reaction to China’s 1974 occupation of Paracel islands
VOV.VN - Vietnam has established sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) islands in accordance with international law, and any effort to change the status quo is null and void, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.
Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa has been established since at least the 17th century, in accordance with international law and has been exercised peacefully, continuously and publicly by successive Vietnamese states, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang said on January 20 in response to reporters’ question regarding Vietnam’s position on China’s occupation of the Hoang Sa islands in 1974.
Vietnam has repeatedly stated that it has sufficient legal basis and historical evidence to assert sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos. Any act of using force or threatening to use force in international relations, especially the use of force to resolve disputes over territorial sovereignty, is completely contrary to the basic principles of the United Nations Charter and a serious violation of international law.
Such acts cannot create the title of sovereignty, nor can they change the fact that sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago belongs to Vietnam, stressed the spokesperson.
