Deputy PM Pham Binh Minh and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini at a press conference in Hanoi, August 5, 2019.

Addressing a press conference following a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Hanoi on Monday, Ms. Mogherini said that the EU supports freedom of movement, navigation, and overflight at sea and the completion of negotiations on a legally binding code of conduct in the East Sea. She noted that the EU wants parties to ease tensions, and supports positions that respect international law, particularly the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Deputy Prime Minister Minh welcomed the EU’s stance, saying that militarization and unilateral actions have been fueling tensions, eroding trust, and disrupting peace, security, and stability in the region. He called on the EU to continue its commitment to peace, stability, the rule of law, its respect for UNCLOS, and its support of rights and legitimate interests of countries in the East Sea.