The Hanoi-based Information and Communication Publishing House has launched a set of more than 20 books containing convincing historical evidence of Vietnam’s undeniable sovereignty over the Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagos in the South China Sea.

The books that assert Vietnam's sovereignty over the East Sea. Photo: Information and Communication Publishing House

The books are products of cooperation between the publishing house and organizations, investigators, historians and historical witnesses who had incessantly compiled documents, legal proof and historical relics that assert Vietnam’s sovereignty over the South China Sea, known as the East Sea in Vietnam.

Citing ancient Vietnamese documents and archives in other countries, the books confirm the fact that Hoang Sa and Truong Sa have been under management and protection by Vietnam for generations.

Documents revealed in the books not only provide convincing legal grounds and historical evidence of Vietnam’s sovereignty over its maritime territory, but also reject slanderous information and China’s groundless claims over Hoang Sa, Truong Sa and other waters of Vietnam in the East Sea.

The books also demonstrate that Vietnam established its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos in early days, and the sovereignty rights have been exercised and defensed continuously and peacefully by Vietnam’s feudal dynasties, sub-contemporary and contemporary states.

China has claimed more than 80% of the East Sea, embroiling several neighboring countries in territorial dispute over the sea.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration on July 12, 2016 ruled in favor of the Philippines in a dispute with China over a case concerning certain issues in the South China Sea including the legality of China's nine-dash line citing Annex VII to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The tribunal also ruled that China has "no historical rights" based on the "nine-dash line" map but China rejected the ruling.