The participants include those from the United States, Sweden, India,Australia, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, China and Russia,besides domestic researchers.
Opening theevent, Chairman of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour DangNgoc Tung said disputes on the East Sea during recent years not onlyaffect the livelihood of thousands of fishermen who depend on theirtraditional fishing ground in this sea, but also threaten peace andnavigation freedom in the region.
In thiscontext, the organisation of international workshops with theparticipation of international policy makers and scholars is verynecessary in order to seek optimal solutions to East Sea issues in linewith Vietnam’s peace-loving tradition and moderate diplomatic policy, hesaid.
Professor Nguyen Manh Hung from GeorgeMason University, the US, emphasized that this workshop should focus onseeking solutions to enable fishermen to continue fishing in theirtraditional fishing grounds on the East Sea.
According to Dr. S.D. Pradhan from Chandigarh University, former DeputyNational Security Advisor to the Prime Minister of India, theinternational community has made great efforts, particularly thoughagreements signed between nations, to maintain peace. However, theseefforts were ignored by China, who is undertaking aggressive acts in theEast Sea.
He said to deal with the currentdisputes, the international community should raise a common voice whichshould be strong enough to make concerned sides to abide byinternational law.
Prof. Ramses Amer from theInstitute for Security and Development Policy, Sweden, was of the viewthat countries involved in a same issue should work together to counterChina’s demands, particularly its stance of dealing with disputesthrough bilateral talks.
More than 20 papersare expected to be presented at the two day conference, focusing onmanaging conflicts in a peaceful manner and resolving disputes based oninternational law.-VNA