(VOVworld) – Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung chaired a government meeting on legislation in Hanoi on Wednesday. Leaders from the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported on developments around China’s illegal placement of its oilrig in Vietnamese waters, which violated Vietnam’s sovereignty and international law.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said Vietnam resolutely struggled to defend its sovereignty in accordance with international law and asks China not to repeat the placement of any oilrig or any other acts that violate Vietnam’s sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction. He said that Vietnam treasured its friendship and cooperation with China in the spirit of mutual respect and equality. He added that Vietnam was ready to work with China and concerned parties to negotiate and defuse tensions in the East Sea peacefully and in line with international law.

The Vietnamese government leader said that safeguarding national sovereignty was a sacred task and any acts of violation must be dealt with strictly.

In reply to the news that China has withdrawn the rig that it had illegally placed in Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone since early May, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Le Hai Binh said on Wednesday that “Vietnam demands China not return its oil rig Haiyang Shiyou-981 or dispatch any other rigs to Vietnam’s oil and gas Block 143 or any other areas belonging to Vietnam’s waters as prescribed by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to create a peaceful and stable environment in the East Sea”.

He confirmed that Vietnam resolutely defends her sovereignty and sovereign right in conformity with international law.