US senators express concern over East Sea situation
US Senator Jim Risch, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, along with three others, namely Bob Menendez, Cory Gardner and Ed Markey, on April 11 criticised the Chinese Coast Guard’s recent sinking of a Vietnamese fishing boat in Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago waters in the East Sea.
Fishing vessels of Vietnam on East Sea (Illustrative photo: VNA)
Washington (VNA) – US Senator Jim Risch, Chairman of the Senate Foreign RelationsCommittee, along with three others, namely Bob Menendez, Cory Gardner and EdMarkey, on April 11 criticised the Chinese Coast Guard’s recent sinking of a Vietnamesefishing boat in Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago waters in the EastSea.
Their statement stressed that the incident and China’s other activities on illegally reclaimed features in the East Sea are deeply concerning and underminingregional stability at a time when the international community should be comingtogether to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.
They condemned China’s actions as causing division and tension in the East Sea, and called on the US to work to ensure a freeand open Indo-Pacific and to promote peaceful activities in the East Sea./.
Vietnam has lodged an official complaint with China following the sinking of a Vietnamese fishing vessel near the former’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago, spokeswoman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said on April 3.
Dr. Gerhard Will, a German expert on the East Sea, has said that China should quit its militarisation in the East Sea and show its willingness and cooperation capacity in security and economy on the basis of equality and the observance of international law.
The US Department of Defence issued a statement on April 9 expressing its deep concern over a Chinese coast guard's collision with and sinking of a Vietnamese fishing vessel near Vietnam's Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago in the East Sea.
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Fishing vessels of Vietnam on East Sea (Illustrative photo: VNA) 
