On March 2^nd representatives of the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry met with representatives of the Chinese Embassy in Viet Nam to protest the Chinese drills. The Vietnamese side clearly stated that by conducting the drills in Truong Sa Archipelago, China had violated Vietnamese sovereignty over the Truong Sa Archipelago and completely run counter to the Declaration on Conducts of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) signed between ASEAN and China in 2002. The Vietnamese representatives reiterated Vietnamese sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa Archipelagos and asked that China should refrain from activities that would further complicate the situation and, along with other ASEAN countries, strictly comply with DOC, contributing to peace in the East Sea.