French officials support Vietnam’s East Sea stance

Addressing a Paris seminar on June 17 discussing the East Sea territorial dispute and China’s recent illegal and aggressive actions, they called on other European nations and the US to raise their collective voice in unison, opposing China’s hegemonic policy.

Vietnamese Ambassador to France Duong Chi Dung recalled China’s illegal placement of its floating drilling rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 deep inside Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf, saying this action is threatening peace and stability, as well as safety, security and freedom of navigation and aviation in the region.

He said that China has deployed a fleet of vessels, including warships, and aircraft to protect the oil rig. These vessels intimidated and attacked Vietnamese law enforcement boats, injuring sailors and damaging their property. They even sank a Vietnamese fishing boat. 

General Daniel Schaeffer, former French military attaché to China, Thailand and Vietnam, said China’s oil rig deployment in Vietnam’s EEZ was part of its ambition to legalise the so-called groundless nine-dash line in the East Sea.

He said China’s move violates international law and the 2002 ASEAN-China Declaration on the Law of the Sea (DOC) and parties concerned cannot sit at the negotiating table if the nine-dash line is not clarified and addressed properly.