Spokesperson of Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang has said that countries have “recognize and respect Vietnam’s right” to file a claim to the UN’s Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) to extend the boundaries of its continental shelf in East Sea (known as the South China Sea). 

Spokesperson of Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang. Photo: N.G

Hang made the statement at the press conference in Hanoi on July 18, reaffirming Vietnam’s position as stated in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ statement following the submission.

“Vietnam has notified relevant countries about this issue through diplomatic channels as a gesture of goodwill and responsibility. All conversations were held in an environment of friendship, openness, and sincerity. Vietnam’s right to claim its continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles from its coasts is acknowledged and respected by all nations in accordance with Article 76 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),” Hang said.

According to Article 76 of UNCLOS 1982, a coastal state must submit a request to the CLCS to establish an extended continental shelf. That’s why Vietnam made the move to the CLCS. 

Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations, submits Vietnam's submission to the CLCS on July 17.

On July 17, Vietnam, represented by Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations and Ambassador Trinh Duc Hai, Deputy Head of the National Border Committee, filed a claim to the CLCS for an extended continental shelf (ECS) in the central area of the South China Sea.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) also announced the filing. It asserted that Vietnam has “fully legal and scientific grounds” to claim  the extension of the limits of its continental shelf in  the South China Sea beyond 200 the nautical miles from its coasts.

According to the ministry, Vietnam  has made  two submissions to the CLCS, including one on the extended continental shelf in the North of the South China Sea and the joint Vietnam-Malaysia submission on the extended continental shelf in the South of the sea back in May 2009.

The MOFA said some regional countries have filed their  claims since 2019. In this context, Vietnam’s decision aims to guarantee Vietnam’s “lawful rights” to its extended continental shelf in accordance with Article 76 of the UNCLOS.

In  the statement, the MOFA also reaffirmed the country’s sovereignty over the Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands in the South China Sea under  the UNCLOS.

Vietnam’s submission on the extended continental shelf comes one month after the Philippines filed a similar claim on the boundaries of its  continental shelf in the South China Sea.

In its note  verbale  to the UN Secretary General regarding the submission of the extended continental shelf, Vietnam reiterated that the claim does not affect the maritime delimitation between Vietnam and neighboring states.