On 10 December 2022, answering a question on Viet Nam’s comment on the 40^th anniversary of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Vice Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Pham Thu Hang reaffirmed:

The establishment of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea – “The Charter on Seas and Oceans” – is an important event which bears great significance toward the progress of international law in general, and of the law of the sea in particular. In the past 40 years, the Convention has always played a role as a comprehensive legal framework, and as legal basis for all activities pertaining to the management and use of seas and oceans.

With the spirit of upholding the law, and as a responsible member of the international community and an active signatory of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Viet Nam always upholds the principles and objectives of the Convention, strictly observes and implements the Convention, and persists in resolving maritime disputes through peaceful means in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Viet Nam actively participates and contributes initiatives within the frameworks of the institutions established in accordance with the Convention, and this has been widely recognized by the international community. At the same time, Viet Nam is promoting the finalization of the domestic legal system on the management and use of seas in accordance with the Convention, and promoting international maritime cooperation on the basis of the Convention’s principles, and the 2015 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

On this occasion, Viet Nam would like to emphasizes that countries need to continue to respect and fully exercise their responsibilities in accordance with the Convention and international law, to work together to contribute actively and meaningfully to the maintenance of peace, stability, rules-based order at sea, safety and freedom of navigation and overflight, and to strengthen sustainable development of seas and oceans./.