The Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) on May 11 said that China’s suspension of fishing in waters within Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Sea carries no weight whatsoever.

Vietnam resolutely rejects China’s unilateral decision to ban fishing in the East Sea, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson stressed, adding that Vietnam has sufficient historical and legal evidence to assert its sovereignty over the Paracel (Hoang Sa) and Spratly (Truong Sa) archipelagoes in the East Sea ( internationally known as South China Sea).

China announced its annual summer fishing ban in parts of the South China Sea (called the East Sea in Vietnam), Xinhua news agency reported on May 1. China has been issuing similar fishing bans every year in recent times and Vietnam has always condemned them.