General Nguyen Chi Vinh responded to the invitation of Chinese ships to Cam Ranh.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh recently answered international press questions about many issues, such as China's desire to establish ADIZ in the East Sea, inviting China to Cam Ranh...

Commenting on the recent situation in the East Sea, Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh told international journalists that Vietnam is very concerned about these developments, and countries in the region may have similar opinions.

“What I want to hear at this year's Dialogue are specific proposals to alleviate the concerns of Vietnam in particular and other countries in general,” said the head of the Vietnamese delegation attending the Shangri-La Dialogue 2016.

Commenting on the speech of US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter at the forum, General Vinh said it was a good speech and spoke relatively fully about the US presence in the Asia-Pacific region.

I paid attention to some points that Secretary Carter emphasized, such as calling for more cooperation to have a common voice and understanding, from which we can build a dialogue mechanism in the region instead of confrontation," Mr. Vinh said.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh answers international press at the Shangri-La Dialogue on June 4. Photo: CT

In his speech, Secretary Carter said several times that China was “isolating itself.” A reporter asked General Vinh whether this “self-isolation” of China applied to its bilateral relationship with Vietnam?

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh said that this was a somewhat hasty comment. The head of the Vietnamese delegation at the Shangri-La Dialogue also pointed out that, at the present time, if China continues to behave like this, if China does not listen to the international community, then “China will embarrass itself” and will face difficulties in its relations with the international community.

Inviting Chinese ships to Cam Ranh

A Hong Kong (China) reporter asked about the information that Vietnam invited Chinese ships to Cam Ranh port. General Vinh made it clear that Vietnam not only invited China, but also invited ships from other countries to Vietnam's economic ports, including Cam Ranh port.

Up to now, General Vinh said that he has invited ships from many countries to Cam Ranh port, including Singapore, France, Russia, India, Australia, etc. "In the long term, Cam Ranh port will be used for economic purposes, as well as to serve foreign affairs goals to strengthen friendly relations between Vietnam and other countries," General Vinh said.

A Singaporean reporter asked General Vinh whether Vietnam had plans to open its military bases to foreign use.

In his answer, he made it clear that Vietnam does not have military bases for other countries to use. All military bases are managed and used by Vietnam. When foreign ships visit, it is all friendly visits within the framework of cooperation programs. “We have welcomed foreign ships to ports in Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau, Hai Phong, Cam Ranh…”

When talking about the defense of Chinese scholars that other countries in the region also build and reclaim land, but why is only China being criticized, General Vinh frankly said this is a "very funny" comparison.

“We are building on islands that have long been under Vietnam’s sovereignty. We are only consolidating these islands to serve the people’s lives, and cannot be compared to actions of reclaiming islands to turn them into military bases. This is a meaningless comparison, made by people who do not understand, or deliberately do not understand,” Mr. Nguyen Chi Vinh affirmed.

Views on the Philippines' lawsuit

International reporters are interested in Vietnam's stance on the Philippines' lawsuit against China. General Vinh refused to comment on this, saying that the final ruling has not been announced yet.

However, he told reporters that the Vietnamese people's feelings about the Philippines' lawsuit against China "generally want a standard, so that not only one country but other countries can rely on to evaluate the issue. Everyone hopes that international law will be enforced."

General Vinh affirmed that to resolve conflicts, disputes and disagreements, legal tools and diplomatic processes need to be respected.

Regarding the information published in the press about China's intention to establish an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the East Sea, General Vinh said "he has not received any notification from official channels, so he has no comment on this issue."

“However, I would like to say that the issue of air control rights has been clearly regulated by international aviation law. We comply with the provisions based on international law. We oppose developments that go against international law, aviation law and Vietnamese law related to the airspace that Vietnam manages; as well as moves that increase the impact on regional safety and threaten aviation safety,” General Vinh emphasized.

Regarding the development of propaganda leaflets about East Sea sovereignty from China's perspective at the Shangri-La Dialogue, saying that the entire East Sea belongs to China, General Vinh said he did not know specifically who distributed these documents.

“But if it were me, I would not do that. Because the Shangri-La Dialogue is an open, public and transparent forum. Here, all countries respect and listen to each other. If someone wants to promote their sovereignty, according to their own reasoning, they should come to the forum and speak openly and transparently. That is much better than distributing leaflets with such content,” General Vinh affirmed.

Not counting the purchase of American weapons

Regarding US President Barack Obama's recent announcement to lift the ban on lethal weapons for Vietnam, General Vinh said, "This is a very good point in the Vietnam-US bilateral relationship and I welcome this development. This shows respect for Vietnam, demonstrates trust, and is commensurate with the Vietnam-US comprehensive partnership."

When asked what weapons Vietnam is interested in buying from the US, and when, General Vinh said “we have not considered it yet”. According to him, up to now, the US lifting the embargo means helping Vietnam have more choices.

According to Zing