June diplomatic activities feature sovereignty protection Diplomatic activities in June featured Viet Nam’s efforts in defending the country’s sacred sovereignty, enhancing strategic partnership with two European countries and reiterating commitments to human rights.   NO ONE, NO COUNTRY can force Viet Nam to make concessions on territorial sovereignty Protection of national sovereignty Viet Nam continued peaceful measures in accordance with international law to demand China immediately withdraw its oil rig as well as escort ships from Viet Nam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. PM Nguyen Tan Dung reiterated this stance during his reception for Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi in Ha noi on June 18. The Government chief pointed out that China’s installation of the oil rig deep inside Viet Nam’s waters seriously violates Viet Nam’s sovereignty, the two countries’ high-level agreements, international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea; threatens peace, stability, security and safety of navigation and aviation in the region. China’s move also sparks public resentment among and hurts the sentiments of the Vietnamese people, adversely affects the cooperative relations between the two Parties and States. He also urged the two sides to control the situation to avoid conflicts and continue maintaining contacts and negotiations to resolve the current divergences. In a move to reaffirm Viet Nam’s determination to protect its sovereignty, State President Truong Tan Sang declared that NO ONE, NO COUNTRY can force Viet Nam to make concessions on territorial sovereignty. “We are determined to defend our land and sea as for all the Vietnamese people, the national territorial sovereignty is sacred and inviolable”, State President Sang stressed. State President Sang quoted the words that King Le Thanh Tong once said to his royal court, which were recorded in Dai Viet Su Ky Toan Thu (The Complete Annals of Dai Viet): “How can we abandon even a single inch of our mountain, our river? You must firmly stand your ground, not letting them gradually encroach. If they do not listen, we can send our envoys to the north to clarify justice. If you dare to concede even a single inch of the land of our ancestors to the enemy, it will be a crime deserving of death.” Also in June, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs organized the 4th and 5th international press conferences on developments in the East Viet Nam Sea to provide the country’s historical and legal evidence proving Viet Nam’ sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa, showcase updated video clips on China’s perverse acts around the illicit rig and reject China’s distorted information. Vietnamese permanent mission to the United Nations continued to sent a letter attached with a diplomatic note addressed to China, to the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to oppose China’s continued illegal operation of the oil rig Haiyang Shiyou 981 in Viet Nam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf. Strategic partnership with the Netherlands, Italy Dutch PM Mark Rutte paid an official visit to Viet Nam from June 9-10 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung. The two PMs decided to set up strategic partnership on agriculture and food security. Earlier, the two countries had established the same level of cooperation in climate change adaptation. The Dutch leaders confirmed to advocate Viet Nam in promoting the comprehensive relations with the EU, encourage the European Commission to soon approve the EU-Viet Nam Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA)and recognize Viet Nam as a full market economy and complete the Free Trade Agreement negotiations with Viet Nam. On the East Sea issue, the Dutch PM shared concerns about recent developments in the East Sea, affirming that the Netherlands supported the Statements of the EU and the ASEAN Foreign Ministers, suggesting that related sides exercise restraint and deal with disputes with peaceful measures in compliance with international law. During their talks in Ha Noi, PM Nguyen Tan Dung and his Italian counterpart Matteo Renzi , the two sides agreed to lift up the two-way trade value to US$5 billion from the current US$3.5 billion in the next two years and create more favorable conditions for their business communities to beef up their linkages. The two countries agreed to establish an Intergovernmental Committee for economic cooperation and the first meeting of the Committee is scheduled to take place in November this year. Regarding the East Sea situation, PM Dung informed the guest about China’s illegal installation of the oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 well within Viet Nam’s continental shelf and economic zone in line with the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. China’s move seriously violates international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) to which China is a signatory, directly threatens peace, stability, security, safety and freedom of navigation and aviation in the East Sea. PM Dung asked Italy to lodge strong protests against China and advocate Viet Nam’s stance on settling the East Sea issue by peaceful means in line with international law. PM Matteo Renzi said that his country backs the stance of the EU and G7 nations that have voiced deep concern over the current situation in the East Sea. He called on the relevant parties to abide by international law and settle the East Sea issue on the basis of international law. Commitments to human rights On May 20, the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) passed Viet Nam’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) on human rights in the second cycle, acknowledging the country’s efforts in protecting and promoting fundamental human rights. Ambassador Nguyen Trung Thanh, head of the Vietnamese delegation announced the list of recommendations accepted by Viet Nam from the 18th session of the UPR Working Group in February this year. Accordingly, among 227 recommendations, Viet Nam has supported 182 recommendations, accounting for 80.17%. Viet Nam will strictly implement the 182 recommendations, affirmed the diplomat. During the session, representatives from many countries and organizations highly spoke of Viet Nam’s efforts and achievements in ensuring human rights and cooperative and constructive attitude in the UPR progress as well as human rights process in Viet Nam. They also congratulated Viet Nam on its early fulfillment of the UN Millennium Development Goals, describing it as a model in creating a foundation for fundamental human rights. VGP/VNN