Hanoi (VNA) –The 8th Ocean Dialogue took place in Hanoi on June 29 under the theme “40th Anniversary of UNCLOS: Promoting maritime cooperation in Southeast Asia”, drawing more than 150 direct and 100 online participants, including 15 speakersfrom 14 countries and territories, and representatives from the UN.

Addressing the event,Deputy Foreign Minister Pham Quang Hieu underlined that the passing of the 1982United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 40 years ago was ahistorical milestone in the development of international law, becomingthe first comprehensive legal framework and a “constitution” of the sea.

The convention has proved its universal values, he said, adding that to date,it continues to play a fundamental role in the development of international lawof the sea, promoting peace, security, cooperation among nations, and thesustainable development of the oceans and seas.

Hieu affirmed thatover the past 40 years, the legal order set up following the UNCLOS has greatlycontributed to maintaining peace and international stability. The peacefulsettlement of disputes at sea in line with international law, therefore, has beenpromoted.

In the face of increasingmaritime challenges, the international community should uphold the rule of lawand comply in good faith with its legal obligations under the convention,especially in making claims and conducting legal proceedings at sea. Statesshould promote cooperation at the international and regional levels for theconservation and sustainable use of seas and oceans, while ensuring freedom ofnavigation and lawful navigational activities, he stressed.

Hieu noted that in 2021,Vietnam was one of the 12 countries founding the Groups of Friends on UNCLOS, withcommitments to complying with and promoting the convention, the UN Charter andinternational law. He said he hopes the group will continue to enhance theawareness and knowledge of the convention, while sharing good practices inapplying the convention in the delimitation of the sea, the peaceful settlementof disputes and the management of the oceans, thereby supporting theimplementation of the convention and meeting the common interests of theinternational community.

For the region, Hieu underlined the need to apply universal values of theUNCLOS to promote cooperation on the foundation of respect for legitimaterights and obligation of coastal states as well as landlocked countries, andamong the members and non-members of the UNCLOS to maintain peace, stability,maritime and aviation security and safety and the sustainable management of theEast Sea.

To this end, statesshould respect international law, including the UNLCLOS, while enhancingtrust and exercising self-restraint and refraining from activitiesthat may further complicate the situation or escalate tensions in the East Sea,and at the same time applying the convention in determining maritime claims andresolving maritime disputes through peaceful measures.

Rüdiger Wolfrum,former Justice of the International Tribunal for theLaw of the Sea, underscored the important role of the convention to the developmentof international law and the promotion of peace, security, and cooperationamong countries as well as the sustainable development of the sea and ocean.

He stressed that the UNCLOS should be applied comprehensively, not separately but linkedwith the dispute settlement mechanisms and all legal provisions of UNCLOS andinternational law, emphasising the need for the convention to be further improved to meet therequirements of the new situation in the coming time./.