(VOVworld) - An international workshop on legal status of islands and rocks in international law and practices in the East Sea opened in Nha Trang city on Wednesday. 

Some 100 scientists voiced their legal stance to support Vietnam’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity on Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos. They upheld the recent rulings by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Philippines lawsuit against China and applauded its standards, historical and legal values. Dr Erik Franckx, a member of the PCA and Dean of the International and European Law Faculty of Belgian Vrije University, said China’s ignorance of the verdict based on the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea went against principles applied to a permanent member of the United National Security Council.

China’s acceleration of reclamation of land and building of artificial island in reefs has caused regional tension. The PCA ruling therefore served as a clarification to the Chinese claims and maritime activities of parties in the dispute. Delegates believed that the ruling will open new opportunities to address existing disputes and expand cooperation. Former Vietnamese Ambassador at the UN, Nguyen Quy Binh said: “The East Sea relates to international aviation and navigation, thus unsolved conflicts will lead to escalation, affecting the whole region and China. Internationalization of dispute settlements will benefit small countries complying with international law.”