On December 10, 2024, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a ceremony to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the entry into force of UNCLOS. UNCLOS was adopted on December 10, 1982 and officially entered into force on November 16, 1994.
Vietnam was one of the first 107 countries to sign and then ratify the Convention. In the Resolution ratifying the Convention, the Vietnamese National Assembly affirmed: “By ratifying the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam expresses its determination to join the international community in building a just order and encouraging development and cooperation at sea.”
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu once again emphasized the value and role of the Convention as the "Constitution of the Ocean", a comprehensive and complete international legal document, regulating all activities at sea, recognized by the international community.
In particular, the Convention has also laid a solid foundation for determining maritime zones, thereby establishing sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction over maritime zones.
At the same time, the Convention also provides for a relatively comprehensive dispute settlement mechanism to peacefully resolve disputes arising between countries regarding the interpretation and application of the Convention.
As a coastal state and a responsible member of the international community, upholding international law, Vietnam always affirms the importance of the Convention and fully and responsibly complies with and implements the provisions of the Convention.
Reviewing Vietnam's achievements in implementing and enforcing the Convention from 1994 to present, Assistant Minister Nguyen Minh Vu acknowledged that the Convention on the Law of the Sea is the only international treaty specifically mentioned in the Party Congress documents of Vietnam, and is the basis for Vietnam to develop and promulgate the Vietnam Law of the Sea in 2012, along with many documents, strategies, and policies on sustainable development of Vietnam's marine economy, and is also applied to determine maritime zones and maritime boundaries.
Vietnam advocates persistently resolving maritime disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with international law, including the Convention on the Law of the Sea, and has in fact applied the Convention in resolving maritime delimitation issues with neighboring countries.
Vietnam has also nominated experienced and highly qualified experts to participate in the agencies established within the framework of UNCLOS, including Associate Professor Dr. Dao Viet Ha being elected to the Legal and Technical Commission, the International Seabed Authority, and nominating candidates for the position of judge of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) for the 2026-2035 term.
Looking back at 30 years of the Convention on the Law of the Sea, Mr. Nguyen Dang Thang, Director of the Department of Law and International Treaties, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, affirmed the comprehensiveness of the Convention and its significance to the international community in general and to Vietnam in particular.
Associate Professor, Dr. Trinh Duc Hai, Deputy Head of the National Border Committee, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, once again emphasized the role of the Convention on the Law of the Sea in managing and resolving maritime disputes, as the legal basis for countries to establish maritime zones and the rights to enjoy from those maritime zones.
Vietnam has applied international law, especially the Convention on the Law of the Sea, in resolving maritime delimitation and maritime cooperation issues with neighboring countries, such as China, Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
Most recently, in July 2024, Vietnam submitted its application for the Extended Continental Shelf Limits beyond 200 nautical miles in the Central East Sea to the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).
Regarding the dispute settlement mechanism under the Convention on the Law of the Sea, Dr. Ximena Hinrichs - Registrar of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), and Mr. Neil Nucup - representative of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in Vietnam introduced the dispute settlement mechanisms under the Convention on the Law of the Sea, emphasizing the role of mechanisms such as ITLOS and PCA in resolving international disputes, as well as in interpreting and applying the Convention on the Law of the Sea.
