National sovereignty and national sovereignty at sea

(Baonghean.vn) -Question 21. What is national sovereignty and national sovereignty at sea?

Reply:The legal status of maritime zones and continental shelves has been specifically, strictly and clearly regulated by the Law of the Sea, with very different contents. To fundamentally understand the rights of coastal states to exercise in their maritime zones and continental shelves, we first need to learn about national sovereignty.

National sovereignty includes two contents: the supreme right of a nation within its territory and the independence of a nation in international relations.

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Within its territory, a nation has supreme legislative, executive and judicial power. All political, economic, cultural and social issues of a nation must be decided by that nation; other nations and international organizations have no right to interfere. All organizations and individuals residing in the territory of that nation must comply with the nation's laws unless otherwise provided for by international treaties to which the nation is a signatory.

In international relations, the independence of a nation is expressed in:

- Self-determination of all domestic and foreign affairs, other countries have no right to interfere or impose; no force or agency stands above the country, has the right to set laws and force the country to comply.

- A State is only obliged to comply with the basic principles of modern international law, the provisions of international treaties that it has signed or participated in, and at the same time respect international practices as well as international treaties signed by other States in accordance with the basic principles of modern international law.

National sovereignty at sea also includes the above basic contents.

The coastal State exercises its sovereignty absolutely, fully, and completely in internal waters and exercises its sovereignty fully and completely in territorial waters. Because internal waters are considered as land parts such as lakes, rivers, streams, and inland water areas. The territorial sea is also considered the maritime territory of the coastal State. The outer boundary of the territorial sea is the national border of the coastal State. This sovereignty is extended to the airspace above the territorial sea, as well as to the bed and subsoil of the territorial sea.

Article 9 of the Law of the Sea of ​​Vietnam stipulates: "The State exercises complete, absolute and full sovereignty over internal waters as on land."

Article 12 of the Law of the Sea of ​​Vietnam stipulates: "The State exercises full and complete sovereignty over the territorial sea and airspace, seabed and subsoil of the territorial sea in accordance with the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea".

It should be noted that sovereignty over territorial waters is exercised fully and completely, but not absolutely as in internal waters. Because foreign ships have the right of innocent passage. Point 2, Article 12 of the Law on the Sea of ​​Vietnam stipulates: "Ships of all countries enjoy the right of innocent passage in Vietnam's territorial waters. Foreign military ships, when exercising the right of innocent passage in Vietnam's territorial waters, must notify the competent Vietnamese authorities in advance."

Foreign aircraft are not allowed to enter the airspace above Vietnam's territorial waters, except in cases where there is consent from the Vietnamese Government or in accordance with international treaties to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a member. In addition, the Vietnamese State has sovereignty over all types of archaeological and historical artifacts in Vietnam's territorial waters.

According to Q&A on Vietnam's Law of the Sea

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