(VOV) – Any activities conducted by foreign countries in Vietnam’s waters without permission is illegal and void, and Vietnam absolutely opposes it.

Vietnam's Foreign Ministry spokesman Le Hai Binh. (Photo: MOFA)

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Le Hai Binh declared while answering reporters’ questions about a notice issued by the China Maritime Safety Administration on May 3. The notice states that China’s drilling rig HD-981 will be operating at 15 degrees 29’58’’ North latitude and 111 degrees 12’06’’ east longitude from May 2 to August 15. Binh insists that this location is totally within Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, about 120 nautical miles from its coast. He stressed that Vietnam has full historical evidence and legal basis affirming its sovereignty over Truong Sa and Hoang Sa archipelagos as well as sovereign right and jurisdiction over its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in line with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) issued a communiqué, saying that the China National Offshore Oil Corporation’s operations violate Vietnam’s sovereignty and jurisdiction under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. PetroVietnam on Sunday sent letters to the Chairman and General Manager of the China National Offshore Oil Corporation, demanding that the company immediately halt its illegal operations, pull the drilling rig out of Vietnam’s waters, and avoid similar actions in the future.