Exhibitions on Hoang Sa, Truong Sa to be held abroad

Last year, the Ministry received the world atlas, published in Brussels in 1827, affirming Viet Nam’s sovereignty over the two archipelagoes.

Also in 2014, exhibits asserting Viet Nam’s possession of Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes were displayed throughout the country, including Ly Son and Phu Quoc islands.

The past exhibitions drew the great participation of both locals and foreigners, said Deputy Minister Tuan.

An exhibition on historical and legal evidence strongly proving Viet Nam's sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes in Binh Thuan province in 2014

According to the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry, before and after the end of the Second World War, the issue of sovereignty over the Hoang Sa archipelago was put on the agenda of a number of international conferences.

The Cairo Conference held between 22 - 26 November 1943, with the attendance of U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Republic of China President Chiang Kai-shek, adopted the Cairo Communiqué aimed at eliminating Japanese administration over all Asia-Pacific islands seized by Japan since the First World War in 1914 and returning to China Chinese territories under Japanese occupation, including Manju, Taiwan and Penghu. Chiang Kai-shek who represented China at the Conference said nothing about the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes.

The Potsdam Conference from 17 July to 2 August 1945 with the attendance of the leaders of the U.S., Great Britain and China issued the Potsdam Declaration reaffirming the Cairo Communiqué. Chiang Kai-shek, the representative of China at the Conference, again made no mention whatsoever of the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes.

The San Francisco Peace Conference on 4 - 8 September 1951 was attended by representatives of 51 countries, including Viet Nam as a member of the French Union. The Prime Minister of the State of Viet Nam Tran Van Huu participated in the conference as Head of the Vietnamese Delegation. The Conference addressed the issue of devolution of a number of territories in the Asia Pacific region. At the Conference, the Head of Delegation of the Soviet Union, Mr. Andrei A. Gromyko, put forwards a proposal on behalf of China containing 13 items, among which was Japan's recognition of the sovereignty of the People's Republic of China over some islands in the East Sea (South China Sea), including the Hoang Sa archipelago. With 46 votes against, 3 votes in favour and 2 abstentions, the Conference rejected the proposal by the Delegation of the Soviet Union.

Immediately after that vote, on 7 September 1951, addressing the Conference, the Head of the Vietnamese Delegation Mr. Tran Van Huu reaffirmed Viet Nam's long standing sovereignty over the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes. None of the 51 participating countries protested against that confirmation by the Vietnamese Delegation of Viet Nam’s sovereignty over these archipelagoes.

The Geneva Conference in 1954 on the restoration of peace in Indochina stated that the parties concerned would respect the independence and territorial integrity of Viet Nam, which included the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes then under the administration of French and Vietnamese forces.

Article 1 of the Paris Agreement in 1973 clearly stated that all countries must respect the independence and territorial integrity of Viet Nam. At that time, the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes were under the administration of the Republic of Viet Nam and constituted an integral part of Vietnamese territory.