Secretary of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines Teodoro Locsin (Source: rappler.com)

During Tuesday’s ceremony marking the 25th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in New York, he said his country is forever grateful to Vietnam for its kindheartedness and humanitarian act. According to him, 22 fishermen were abandoned in the sea until a passing Vietnamese fishing boat rescued them. Their Philippine fishermen’s vessel was sunk by a Chinese boat at the Reed Bank in Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago on June 9.  The case highlights the importance of moral and legal terms as mentioned in Article 33, the UNCLOS, he said.