Parties involved in territorial disputes in the East (South China) Sea should sit together for negotiations after the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)’s ruling on the Philippines lawsuit against China’s claims in the sea, in order to avoid conflicts, a French professor of history has said.
Speaking to Vietnam News Agency correspondents in France, Professor Pierre Journoud from Paul-Valery University 3 highlighted the significance of the ruling as it rejected China’s claims of “historical rights” in the East Sea.
Closer cooperation is necessary among relevant parties to solve the issue, he said.
The expert predicted that involved countries will have to join long-lasting negotiations if they want to prevent disputes and wars from occurring.
Journoud, who is also a researcher of t he Institute of Strategic Studies at the French military school (IRSEM), cited successful negotiations for the delimitation of the Gulf of Tonkin between Vietnam and China, which resulted in the signing of an agreement between the two sides in 2000.
Similar negotiation models should be expanded in other waters in Southeast Asia, he said.
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