China's violation of DOC - a challenge for ASEAN

Unfortunately, in practice, China has repeatedly encroached on the waters of the Philippines and Vietnam, often causing tension and instability in the East Sea. Particularly serious, on May 2, 2014, China brazenly and illegally placed the HD 981 drilling rig at coordinates 15 degrees 29 North latitude - 111 degrees 12 East longitude, completely within Vietnam's sovereign waters. At the same time, China dispatched more than 80 ships of various types and aircraft to support, spray water, and ram the hulls of Vietnamese fishermen and border guards. This is a blatant act of invasion into the sovereignty of Vietnam - a neighboring country, an ASEAN member.

Comparing with the content of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) of which China is a signatory, it can be seen that this country has violated all the provisions of the DOC.

The signatories of the DOC all committed to respecting the objectives and principles of the UN Charter, the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) and the five principles of peaceful coexistence (Article 1). Thus, by its act of aggression in placing the HD 981 drilling rig in Vietnam’s sovereign waters, China has denied the basic principles respected by the international community, including the fact that China was once a party to the initiative on the five principles of peaceful coexistence. This is an act of trampling on the basic principles of modern international relations, which is unacceptable.

The signatories of the Declaration commit to “building mutual trust and confidence” (Article 2), “reaffirming their respect and commitment to the freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea” (Article 3) and “taking responsibility for resolving territorial and jurisdictional disputes by peaceful means without resorting to the threat or use of force, through friendly consultations and negotiations by sovereign states directly concerned” (Article 4). The question is whether China’s placement of the HD 981 platform with the support of armed forces is an act of “confidence building” by Beijing, or is it a fulfillment of its commitment to “friendly consultations and negotiations” as they signed? Can the mobilization of an armed force to attack Vietnamese ships be called a peaceful act, “without using force or threatening to use force” as they pledged?

Just citing a few points is enough to show that the Chinese authorities have acted contrary to the terms they signed in the DOC. They have truly violated Vietnam’s sovereignty and blatantly violated the content of the DOC. That also means they have not sincerely and seriously implemented the terms agreed with ASEAN and have shown an attitude of not really respecting ASEAN partners. This is a big challenge not only to one or a few ASEAN members but also an arrogant attitude towards all ASEAN countries on the way to building the Community next year.

The serious situation in the East Sea was announced by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung at the 24th ASEAN Summit in Myanmar, emphasizing: “This is the first time China has brazenly placed a drilling rig deep in the continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zone of an ASEAN country, which is an especially serious violation of international law, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, and also an especially serious violation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) to which China is a signatory. This extremely dangerous action has been and is directly threatening peace, stability, security, and maritime safety in the East Sea.”

In response to China’s reckless actions, ASEAN for the first time included this issue in the content of three important Statements: the Statement of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers, the Statement of the Nay Pyi Taw Summit and the Statement of the Chairman of the Summit - the President of the host country Myanmar. The Statements clearly show ASEAN’s quite consistent viewpoint, reaching a high level of consensus in resolving the East Sea issues in the spirit of DOC - a document that China has signed and is responsible for strictly implementing.