Ministry of Foreign Affairs talks about China's seizure of Hoang Sa in 1974

On January 20, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang affirmed this when answering a reporter's question asking for Vietnam's viewpoint on China's seizure of Hoang Sa in 1974.

Ms. Hang emphasized, as has been stated many times, that Vietnam has sufficient legal basis and historical evidence to affirm its sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos.

"In particular, Vietnam's sovereignty over Hoang Sa was established at least since the 17th century, in accordance with international law and has been exercised peacefully, continuously and publicly by successive Vietnamese states," said the Foreign Ministry spokesperson.

Ms. Pham Thu Hang affirmed that any act of using force or threatening to use force in international relations, especially the use of force to resolve disputes over territorial sovereignty in relations between countries, is completely contrary to the basic principles of the United Nations Charter.

These actions also seriously violate international law, cannot create a title of sovereignty, nor can they change the fact that sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago belongs to Vietnam.