(VOVworld) – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Consul Department reported a number of Vietnamese fishing vessels working in the Hoang Sa or Vietnam’s Paracel archipelago have been obstructed and chased by Chinese ships, leading to loss of property.

After having information verified by the relevant agencies, representatives from the Consul Department met with representatives from the Chinese Embassy in Hanoi on Monday to deliver a diplomatic note, opposing the China’s position over the issue. The note stated that: “such actions of the Chinese forces have violated Vietnam’s sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction in the East Sea, adversely affected Vietnamese fishermen’s legitimate benefits and property, and gone against the two countries’ leaders’ common understanding on the humanitarian treatment of fishermen. The Vietnamese representative added that Vietnam has asked the Chinese to investigate the issue and properly compensate the Vietnamese fishermen while preventing any possible recurrence of such issues.