The event attracted experts in law and the East Sea from Russia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and India.

Speaking on the workshop’s first topic on the situation in the East Sea and the effectiveness of international and regional cooperation, Prof. Dr. Dmitry Mosyakov, Director of the Centre of ASEAN, Australia and Oceania at the RAS’s Institute of Oriental Studies, highly valued Vietnam’s consistent foreign policy which looks to prevent the escalation of tensions, respect international law, and avoid military activities in principle.

In her speech, Vice Chairwoman of the Vietnam Lawyers Association Le Thi Kim Thanh affirmed that Vietnam’s consistent policy on the East Sea issue matches the trend of peace and stability for development, the country’s viewpoints on the issue are in line with international law and historical facts, and its efforts have also contributed to the development of the East Sea and the region.

Edre Olalia, President of the International Association of Democratic Lawyers (IADL) and President of the National Union of People’s Lawyers of the Philippines, agreed on the need to step up and complete existing initiatives, and to resolve the East Sea issue in a proactive and principled manner, with priority given to achieving a peaceful solution accepted by all parties, mainly the countries with sovereignty claims.

The workshop voiced support for the conclusion proposed by Olalia. Accordingly, it is necessary to maintain cooperation to promote all-round solutions, including increasing legal solutions; fostering field cooperation activities such as conducting joint patrols, building trust, and carrying out demilitarisation to ease tensions; and further making use of cooperation forums and attracting attention at larger frameworks like the United Nations. In particular, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) should strengthen intra-bloc cooperation in this issue and smartly deal with such factors as competition among powers./.