The World for Freedom

Vietnam's Fisheries Society protested China's 2026 unilateral fishing moratorium in parts of the South China Sea, including waters Vietnam considers under its sovereignty and jurisdiction. The organization said the ban violates Vietnam's rights and interests and creates additional risks for Vietnamese fishermen operating in traditional fishing grounds. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam's foreign ministry rejected China's 2026 fishing ban and reiterated that Beijing has no right to impose unilateral restrictions in waters surrounding the Paracel Islands, which China controls but Vietnam claims. Hanoi said activities affecting the islands must respect Vietnam's sovereignty and international law. Source: (Full article...)

Analysis of Chinese Coast Guard movements found continuing patrol activity along the southwestern edge of Beijing's sweeping South China Sea claim, an area encompassing portions of Vietnam's exclusive economic zone. Researchers said the patrol pattern illustrates China's continuing effort to maintain a government presence far from its mainland coast. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam sent a diplomatic note protesting Chinese activity at Sandy Cay in the Spratly Islands after Chinese personnel landed there and displayed China's flag. Hanoi said activities by China and the Philippines at the disputed sandbanks violated Vietnam's sovereignty over the Spratly archipelago. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam's agriculture authorities rejected China's 2025 fishing ban covering large parts of the South China Sea. Hanoi said the unilateral measure has no legal value in waters under Vietnamese sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction and instructed fishermen to continue following Vietnamese law. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam formally opposed China's 2025 seasonal fishing moratorium, saying it violated Vietnamese sovereignty over the Paracel Islands and Vietnam's sovereign rights in its maritime zones. Hanoi has repeatedly objected to Beijing applying domestic fishing regulations to disputed waters. Source: (Full article...)

Satellite and vessel-tracking analysis showed Chinese Coast Guard patrols continuing around Vanguard Bank during 2024. The area lies within waters Vietnam considers part of its exclusive economic zone and has previously been a major flashpoint when Chinese survey and coast guard ships challenged Vietnamese oil and gas activity. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam protested what it called China's illegal detention of Vietnamese fishermen and fishing vessels near the Paracel Islands. The foreign ministry demanded their immediate release and said China's actions seriously infringed Vietnam's sovereignty and the lawful rights of Vietnamese fishermen. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam lodged a strong protest after saying Chinese law-enforcement personnel beat Vietnamese fishermen and confiscated their fishing equipment near the Chinese-controlled Paracel Islands. Vietnamese authorities said 10 fishermen were injured, with some suffering broken limbs. Beijing said the fishermen were operating illegally and denied that its personnel caused injuries. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnamese accounts of the September 2024 Paracel confrontation said personnel from Chinese vessels boarded a fishing boat and beat crew members with iron bars. Several fishermen suffered serious injuries and their catch and equipment were reportedly confiscated. China said its enforcement actions were professional and restrained. Source: (Full article...)

The Philippines publicly supported Vietnam after Hanoi accused Chinese maritime law-enforcement personnel of assaulting Vietnamese fishermen near the Paracels. Philippine officials called the use of force against civilians unjustified and said such behavior violated international law, adding regional attention to Vietnam's protest. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam filed a submission with the United Nations seeking recognition of an extended continental shelf in the central South China Sea. China immediately opposed the filing. Hanoi said its submission did not prejudice sovereignty disputes and reiterated its claims over the Paracel and Spratly islands. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam called on China to respect international law after Beijing announced a new straight baseline in the northern Gulf of Tonkin. Baselines determine how territorial seas and other maritime zones are measured, and Hanoi stressed that any Chinese delineation must respect the existing bilateral boundary agreement and Vietnam's lawful rights. Source: (Full article...)

Beijing rejected Vietnam's renewed assertion of sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly islands in January 2024, saying China's own claims were supported by history. Hanoi maintains that it has sufficient historical and legal evidence for sovereignty over both archipelagos, keeping the territorial dispute unresolved. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam and the Philippines agreed to strengthen coast guard cooperation and improve mechanisms for preventing incidents in the South China Sea. Both countries have overlapping claims of their own, but the agreement came as each faced increasingly assertive Chinese maritime operations in disputed waters. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnamese and Philippine coast guards conducted their first joint exercise in 2024, focusing on search-and-rescue and maritime cooperation. The two governments have sought closer coordination as both confront China's much larger coast guard and Beijing's expansive South China Sea claims. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam protested the operation of a Chinese research vessel and accompanying ships inside its exclusive economic zone in 2023. Hanoi said the activities violated its sovereign rights and demanded that the vessels leave Vietnamese waters. Source: (Full article...)

The Chinese research ship Xiang Yang Hong 10 operated for weeks in waters Vietnam considers part of its exclusive economic zone, accompanied by coast guard and other vessels. Hanoi repeatedly demanded that the group leave, turning the survey mission into another test of Vietnam's ability to enforce its maritime rights. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam's offshore energy zones near Vanguard Bank remain exposed to recurring Chinese coast guard patrols. The area is economically important to Vietnam, and past Chinese deployments have forced confrontations over exploration. Continued patrols demonstrate Beijing's ability to maintain pressure around Vietnamese energy interests without open military conflict. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnamese fishermen operating near the Paracel Islands face an especially difficult environment because China has controlled the archipelago since 1974 while Vietnam continues to claim sovereignty. The 2024 beating and detention incidents showed how the territorial dispute directly affects civilians who continue fishing in waters Hanoi regards as Vietnamese. Source: (Full article...)

China's recurring seasonal fishing bans apply Chinese domestic regulations across disputed areas of the South China Sea, including waters Vietnam says fall under its sovereignty or maritime jurisdiction. Hanoi has repeatedly rejected the measures because accepting them could imply recognition of Chinese administrative authority over contested waters. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam's Fisheries Society said China's unilateral fishing moratorium directly affects Vietnamese fishermen and their normal economic activity. The organization urged authorities to protect fishermen operating in waters claimed by Vietnam and described the Chinese ban as having no legal validity over Vietnamese vessels. Source: (Full article...)

China's physical control of the Paracel Islands allows its coast guard and other maritime forces to operate from facilities much closer to Vietnamese fishing grounds. Vietnam continues to claim the archipelago as Hoang Sa and regularly protests Chinese administrative, military and law-enforcement activity there. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam dramatically accelerated construction and land reclamation at its South China Sea outposts in 2024. Analysts said the expansion strengthens Vietnam's ability to defend its claims in a maritime environment dominated by China's much larger artificial islands, military facilities and coast guard presence. Source: (Full article...)

U.S. researchers found Vietnam creating new land at a record pace across its Spratly outposts. Although Vietnam's construction itself has environmental consequences, analysts view the expansion partly in the context of China's far larger island-building campaign and militarized bases, which transformed the strategic balance in the South China Sea. Source: (Full article...)

Research on South China Sea reef destruction found China responsible for the largest share of documented damage from island construction, while destructive giant-clam harvesting by Chinese fishermen damaged additional reef areas. Environmental degradation affects the contested maritime ecosystem on which Vietnamese and other regional fishing communities depend. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam has increasingly emphasized the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea in disputes involving China, including its continental-shelf filing and objections to Beijing's Gulf of Tonkin baseline. China continues to rely on sovereignty claims that overlap areas Vietnam considers its own, leaving international law a central part of Hanoi's resistance. Source: (Full article...)

Rather than relying only on dramatic confrontations, China's coast guard maintains repeated patrols in disputed areas, including waters overlapping Vietnam's claims. Maritime analysts say this persistent presence allows Beijing to demonstrate administrative control and challenge rival states without needing to permanently occupy every contested location. Source: (Full article...)

Vietnam's growing maritime cooperation with the Philippines reflects a broader effort by Southeast Asian claimants to manage disputes among themselves while facing China's much larger coast guard and navy. Hanoi and Manila agreed to resolve their own differences peacefully and improve coordination at sea. Source: (Full article...)

From research ships entering Vietnam's exclusive economic zone to fishermen being beaten or detained, unilateral fishing bans, new Chinese baselines and formal objections to Vietnam's U.N. maritime claims, the past three years have produced repeated disputes over who can regulate, patrol and exploit waters claimed by Vietnam. Beijing says it is defending Chinese sovereignty, while Hanoi rejects China's expansive claims and continues to assert its rights under international law. Source: (Full article...)