Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lê Thị Thu Hằng. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI Việt Nam has demanded China immediately end violations and withdraw all vessels from its waters and respect its sovereignty and jurisdiction to preserve bilateral relations and ensure peace and stability in the region, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lê Thị Thu Hằng said on Friday.

She made the statement in response to reporters’ queries about Việt Nam’s stance on the statement by a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on July 17 about the developments in the East Sea (South China Sea). 

Hằng said Chinese geological survey vessel group Haiyang Dizhi 8 recently violated Việt Nam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in the south of the East Sea, which belongs to Việt Nam in line with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), to which both Việt Nam and China are members.

Việt Nam had contacted the Chinese side many times via different channels and handed over diplomatic notes to protest the violations, she said, adding that Việt Nam’s authorities at sea continued adopting proper measures to enforce the nation's sovereignty and jurisdiction in a peaceful manner in line with international law.

"As confirmed by the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson on July 16, Việt Nam’s consistent stance is to peacefully struggle in line with international law against any violation of its sovereignty, sovereign right and jurisdiction over the seas defined in the 1982 UNCLOS," she said.

The official said "maintaining order, peace and security in the East Sea is a common interest of countries both inside and outside the region. Việt Nam wants concerned countries and the international community to protect and maintain this joint interest." VNS