Vietnam calls for continuous goodwill implementation of UNCLOS 1982
Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu called on member states to continue implementing the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) with a goodwill spirit, while addressing the 34th meeting of States Parties to the UNCLOS (SPLOS-34) held in New York from June 10-14.
Vu emphasised the role and importance of the convention as the "Constitution of Oceans" - a comprehensive legal document that regulates all activities of countries in the field of seas and oceans, and an important basis for the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 on the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, seas and marine resources.
He highlighted several challenges emerging in the implementation process in recent times such as marine pollution, over-exploitation of marine resources, the development of new marine technologies, the emergence of various types of crimes at sea, the escalation of regional tensions, and unilateral actions by countries that threaten maritime safety and security.
Regarding the East Sea, the head of the Vietnamese delegation suggested member countries implement maritime policies responsibly and legally, work together to ensure peace, stability, prosperity and sustainable development. He affirmed that a peaceful and stable environment to serve the sustainable development in the East Sea can only be guaranteed when countries establish their maritime zones in accordance with the 1982 UNCLOS and seriously exercise their sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction under the convention as well as maintaining restraint to jointly solve disputes by peaceful means in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter and the UNCLOS.
Vu asserted that Vietnam always strives with regional countries to promote respect for the convention, fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and negotiate to early achieve a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) consistent with international law.
The official also assessed that the agencies formed under the convention all made important contributions to establishing legal order in the maritime and ocean field, maintaining maritime peace and security and achieving many results in the past year, referring to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), and the International Seabed Authority (ISA).
He affirmed the role of ITLOS in the peaceful settlement of disputes related to the application and interpretation of the convention, and called on member states to seriously implement its judgments and decisions as well as the dispute resolution mechanisms stipulated in the convention.
The Vietnamese delegation confirmed the importance of determining the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles to delimiting boundaries between the continental shelves of member countries and the international ocean floor area, thus creating conditions for the full and effective implementation of the convention's regulations on management and equitable sharing of benefits and mineral resources in this area.
On this basis, Vietnam calls for practical measures to speed up the CLCS process of reviewing reports on the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles that have been submitted, he added.
On this occasion, the Vietnamese delegation had meetings and contacts with the UN Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, the ITLOS President, the CLCS President, and representatives of foreign delegations, including the Philippines, Laos, and Malaysia to exchange views on issues of mutual concern and promote cooperative activities in the coming time.
