A Government-level negotiation on the territorial boundaries between Vietnam and China held on December 28-31 in Hanoi has successfully concluded with a Joint Declaration on the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation work between the two countries. On the occasion, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs Vu Dung, head of the Vietnamese Government’s delegation, has granted an interview to Nhan Dan reporter. The content of the interview is as follows:

Question: A Joint Declaration on the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation work between Vietnam and China has just been made by the heads of the two Government-level delegations. Would you please say something more about this event?

Answer: A special meeting between the heads of the Government-level negotiation on the territorial boundaries was held on December 28-31, 2008 in Hanoi. During the meeting, the two parties had reached a number of common concepts of great importance. Especially the two parties had unanimously agreed to a package settlement solution concerning the Ban Gioc Waterfall area and the Bac Luan river mouth area. As far as the Ban Gioc Waterfall area is concerned, the high waterfall and also the auxiliary waterfall shall completely belong to Vietnam, while the main waterfall is mutually agreed to have the border line start from the former landmark 53 through Po Thoong hillock to the middle point of the surface of the main waterfall and then continue to go along the main current of the Quay Son river. As far as the Bac Luan river mouth area is concerned, the border line starts from the upstream Tuc Lam bank to the first point of the Tonkin Gulf demarcation line. With the completion of the river mouth’s demarcation  line, Vietnam and China have finished defining the complete border line of 1,400 km in length crossing from West to East, linking to the demarcation line within the Tonkin Gulf. The settlement of these two areas are in conformity with international law and with the 1999 Treaty, and fundamentally it has met with the concern of the two parties.

The two parties have agreed not to build any man-made works in the Ban Gioc Waterfall area in order to protect the natural scapes and ecological environment in the area, at the same time unanimously agreed to consider the co-operation in exploiting the tourism potential and a Government-level agreement on this issue shall be signed. The two parties have also agreed that a free movement area shall be established for the boats and ships in the border area at the Bac Luan river mouth and a Government-level agreement shall be signed stipulating the relevant specific contents. The two parties have also agreed that a ceremony to celebrate the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation in the Huu Nghi (Friendship) border gate area (Lang Son, Vietnam and Guangxi, China) at a convenient time in 2009.

At 19.00 hrs on December 31, 2008, the two parties released a Joint Declaration on the completion of landmark planting and demarcation work. After that they signed the minutes of the meeting recording all of these results as well as the relevant work necessary for the deployment in the time to come.

The December 31, 2008 Joint Declaration reaffirms: “The completion of all the landmark planting and demarcation work is an event of important historic significance in the relationship between Vietnam and China”. This is the common achievement of all the landmark planting and demarcation forces, the common victory of the Vietnam-China friendship and the vivid manifestation of the comprehensive strategic co-operative relationship agreed upon by the senior leaders of the two countries.

These achievements we have obtained should go to the senior leaders of the two countries for their concern and close guidance and to the two negotiation delegations at the Governmental level for their indefatigable efforts, to the landmark planting and demarcation forces of the Foreign Ministry, the National Defence Ministry, the Public Police Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry, the Agricultural and Rural Development Ministry, the Construction and Finance Ministries and the localities sharing the common border line as well as the majority of the ethnic minority people in the border provinces, at the same time this is the inheritance of many generations of leaders and people of the two countries.

Question: Would you please introduce some things about the process and result of the Vietnam-China landmark planting and demarcation?

Answer: In compliance with the stipulation in Article 6 of the 1999 Treaty, in 2000 the two parties set up the Joint Committee in charge of the Vietnam-China inland landmark planting and demarcation to carry out the landmark planting and demarcation work. Then the Committee formed a group of technical experts and 12 joint landmark planting and demarcation groups under the authority of the Committee to deploy the field landmark planting and demarcation at the 12 corresponding border sections.

The landmark planting and demarcation is a very new work to do for all of our ministries, sectors and localities. After two years in preparation, in December 2001, Vietnam and China planted the first landmark at the international border gate Mong Cai (Quang Ninh province) and Dong Hung (Guangxi province). From October 2002, the two parties had started across the board the landmark planting and demarcation work on all along the border line. However, due to the initial difficulties as mentioned above, in 2003 and 2004, the two parties had planted only 89 landmarks. To accelerate the speed of the landmark planting and demarcation, the two parties agreed to apply the principle “Do the easy landmark planting first, difficult landmark planting later”. As a result, in 2005 and 2006, a considerable progress had been made. Until early 2007, the two parties had implemented about 70% of the landmark planting and demarcation on the border line. Yet, in 2007 the speed was slower due to the fact that all the remaining areas belonged to the sensitive areas with age-old dispute history, so difficult to resolve it. That was why, in some month, no landmark was planted by a certain group. In face of that situation, Vietnam and China had held out a lot of measures with a view to pushing ahead the implementation progress, and of the most important was the measure for a package solution. It means that the areas should be divided into different packages of common characters, say, “the border gate package”, “the former landmark package in the French-Qing time”, “the Bac Luan river mouth and the Ban Gioc Waterfall package” in order to settle the problems in accordance with certain principles. These packages had mutual relationship. The “package” settlement had been implemented in the spirit of equality, mutual respect, reasonability and rationality, or in general it could give interest balance and be acceptable to both parties. On the other hand, it tried to limit to the lowest possible level the influence on the inhabitants in the border areas.

Until today after over seven years of consistent efforts, the two parties have undertaken 13 rounds of the Government-level official negotiations on the territorial boundaries with a lot of meetings of the two delegation heads, 31 rounds of the Chairman-level negotiations of the Joint Committee in charge of the inland landmark planting and demarcation. The negotiation had become ever more difficult and complicated when it had come closer to the finish. Only in 2008, the two parties had carried out 11 rounds of  the Chairman-level negotiations, in which the shortest round lasted 9 (nine) days, the longest round, 23 (twenty three) days and the longest session lasted 30 hours without respite.

As a result, the two parties have finished their field demarcation work along the length of 1,400 km of the border line (in which 344 km of the border line run along 21 main rivers and streams); planted around 2,000 landmarks, in which there are over 1,500 main landmarks and over 400 auxiliary landmarks. This landmark system has been marked, recorded and described in conformity with the actual land terrains in a detailed, scientific and objective manner. If we compare it with other countries’ border lines in the world, the inland Vietnam-China border line has been judged as having the most dense and clearest degree of landmarks defined in accordance with the modern method to ensure the good faith and sustainability.

Question: Can you tell us something about the main difficulties in the process of the inland Vietnam-China landmark planting and demarcation?

Answer: The landmark planting and demarcation is the bilateral work and everything must be mutually agreed and done by the two parties. The Vietnam-China boundaries have got dangerous and complex terrains with harsh climatic conditions and in many places there are average heights of over 1,000 metres such as in Dien Bien and Lai Chau. Of 1,400 km of the border line, there are about 344 km of rivers and streams with swift currents with continuous changes due to floods. Many border areas are far from the inhabitants’ areas with extremely difficult road conditions. The task posed to the people involving in landmark planting and demarcation is to come to all the areas where there are the border lines, even though there are risky mountains, high passes or abysses. Many groups had to walk, climb passes, wade streams and go through the forests for 3 to 4 days before they could come to the border line area in spite of any dangers or difficulties concerning the terrains, climatic conditions, sickness, even in some areas there were still unexploded mines and bombs. Some groups had to stay for days in the border areas and had to work in the chill, fog, ice and snow conditions. It is because of this that many officers and men had shed their blood, even sacrificed their lives for the Fatherland’s landmark planting and demarcation work.

Secondly, it is the issue left by history, so there are some areas mutually managed by the two sides. The people of this side have done the farming work in the area of the other side or they have lived and used the same source of water, even they have their grave yards in each other’s territories. As far as these areas are concerned, Vietnam and China have agreed as one mind to settle the issue in the principle of flexibility and try to limit to the lowest possible level all the impacts on the life and production of the people in the border areas.

Thirdly, the landmark planting and demarcation is to bring the border lines from the Treaty to the fields. This is an extremely difficult work because the wordings and maps in the Treaty cannot conform to the fields all the time and vice versa. Even some time the wordings and maps in the Treaty itself cannot conform to each other. Yet, in the conditions of the political, economic and social ups and downs in combination with the continual natural disasters in each country, this can be completely understood. Besides, as you know, the border line on the map has only one line with the map scale of 1-50,000, this line corresponds to the field in about 50 metres.

In spite of the fact that we had to face with these difficulties and challenges, all of our people getting involved in the landmark planting and demarcation work with the high sense of responsibility before the people and country had made their great efforts to overcome all the difficulties and hardships to complete with excellence the landmark planting and demarcation work. This work had also been given constant care and close, direct guidance of the Party and Government leaders of the two countries. Especially our Party and Government leaders had many times come to some border areas to make surveys and listen to the opinions and aspirations of the local people so that they could have a closer guidance to the negotiation delegation. The Government had given high priority concerning human resource and finance to the landmark planting and demarcation work.

Question: Can you say something about the significance of the event when the landmark planting and demarcation work was completed on all through the inland border line between Vietnam and China and about what is going to be done in the time to come?

Answer: The Joint Declaration of the heads of the two Government-level negotiation delegations has said pretty fully about this issue. I only want to say some more points.

Firstly, it is the first time in history that Vietnam and China in their capacities as two sovereign, independent nations have defined by themselves the inland border line between the two countries with a complete, modern system of documents, maps and national landmarks with an everlasting value for the two nations, the two countries.

Secondly, the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation work will open up new opportunities for development in each country, particularly will create conditions for the localities sharing the border line to expand their exchanges, co-operation and enhance their economic and trade relations. The facts in the past few years have shown that where the landmark planting and demarcation has been finished, the border order and security and the economic and trade relations have become much better. This is the firm premises to build the Vietnam-China border areas into the border line with an everlasting peace, friendship and mutual development.

Thirdly, the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation work can be termed as to have settled a very sensitive issue in the relations between Vietnam and China. Following the signing of the 1999 Treaty and the 2000 Tonkin Gulf Demarcation Treaty, the completion of the landmark planting and demarcation work is an appropriate work to step by step concretize the comprehensive strategic relations and co-operation between Vietnam and China on the basis of the 16-words motto and the four-goods spirit and is a necessary contribution to peace, stability and development in the region.

In 2009, the two parties will continue their discussions in order to finalize  the content of Protocol on the landmark planting and demarcation and the attached annexes, including the maps and documents recording the results of the landmark planting and demarcation reached by the two parties in the fields in recent years; carry on talks on the Regulation on management of the new border line and the Agreement on management of international border gates.

Question: On this important event, what do you want to talk with the officers and men who have made active contributions to the completion of the inland landmark planting and demarcation between Vietnam and China?

Answer: In this very moving hour, on behalf of the Foreign Ministry, the standing office of the State Guidance Board on the landmark planting and demarcation, I would like to express my sincere thanks to all the officers and men and people in the border provinces for their active participation in the landmark planting and demarcation in recent years, who have made a contribution to recording today’s achievement. We also would like to express sincere thanks to the people of all strata in the whole country and Vietnamese nationals abroad for their constant concern, encouragement and inspiration to us in the whole landmark planting and demarcation process.

The border and territorial work is really hard and challenging, even with blood sheds or sacrifice of our lives, but it is due to this special work that it is not known to all. We do hope that from today when Vietnam and China have a complete border line, everyone will understand clearer the landmark planting and demarcation work and will have sympathy with the difficulties and endurances of the officers and men who have got involved in this work.

Question: Some websites in foreign countries have continued to make distorted reports that Vietnam has sole land. Have you got any comments on it?

Answer: I have got many occasions to say about this issue. Today once again I want to reaffirm that the territorial sovereignty is an issue of extreme sanctity to any nation, any country. Our nation has for thousands of years fought and sacrificed to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. For nearly eight decades now, the Vietnamese people under the leadership of the Party and Uncle Ho have gone through the extremely hard resistance of wars, bearing all great losses and sacrifices to defend the territorial integrity of this lovely land. In the negotiations with China and other neighbouring countries as well as the process of the landmark planting and demarcation in the fields, we have manifested all clearly the unswerving stand of ours: the territorial  sovereignty is the issue of principle character with no concession. As I said above, it is because of the fact that history has left it, there are some overlapping farming areas. The two parties have unanimously agreed that this should be adjusted flexibly on the basis of interest balance. It is therefore impossible to have such a thing as “Vietnam is losing land” or “cutting land” for this country or that country as being raised hue and cry by some foreign websites. It can only be said that these websites have either lacked information or deliberately distorted information for different plots.

Here I would like to cite some pieces of information on the results of the landmark planting and demarcation in the areas most concerned by people:

As for the Ban Gioc Waterfall area, this waterfall comprises two parts: the auxiliary waterfall and the main waterfall. The auxiliary waterfall belongs completely to Vietnam and the main waterfall streaming straight down to the Quay Son river is the common border river. In accordance with the 1999 Treaty, the borderline shall be defined on the principle of median of the main current. At this round of talks, Vietnam and China have agreed that the border line running from the former landmark 53 through Po Thoong hillock to the middle point of the main surface of the waterfall and then to the main flow of the Quay Son river. Vietnam and China have also unanimously agreed to co-operate to develop economic and tourism potentials in the Ban Gioc Waterfall area.

As for the Huu Nghi Quan (Friendship Pass), according to the historical documents being archived, Tran Nam Quan or else called Ai Nam Quan (Nam Quan Pass) all lies on the part of China, the border line lies in the south of Tran Nam Quan. According to Dai Nam Nhat Thong Tri (History of the Unification of Great Vietnam), Tran Nam Quan was built in the Minh dynasty and after that, the Qing dynasty renovated it in 1726. The important historical vestiges of the Huu Nghi (Friendship) border gate is landmark 19 planted by France and Qing in 1894. Of recent time, Vietnam and China have planted landmark 1117 in coincidence with the former landmark 19, the border line goes through zero kilometre, the former landmark 19 to the spot which is 184 metres away from the present railway line connection. So it can be reaffirmed that the border line at the Huu Nghi border gate which has just been demarcated and landmarked is in conformity with the history and practical management of this area.