New Delhi, Sep 15: India today dismissed Chinese objections over its oil exploration projects in two Vietnamese blocks in the South China Sea, saying its cooperation with Vietnam was as per international laws and it would like the cooperation to grow.
Noting that there was an active programme of trade and economic cooperation with Vietnam, External Affairs Ministry official Spokesperson Vishnu Prakash said cooperation in the area of energy, hydrocarbon as well as renewable energy was one of the important facets of it.
He was replying to a question on China asking India and other countries to refrain from oil exploration in maritime areas offered by Vietnam in the South China Sea, claiming it enjoys “indisputable sovereignty” there.
He said ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) has been in Vietnam for quite sometime in offshore oil and natural gas exploration field and that they were in the process of further expanding cooperation and operation and Essar, a subsidiary of Essar oil Ltd, has also been awarded a gas block in Vietnam.
“This is one important area of cooperation and we would like this area of cooperation to grow. Our cooperation with Vietnam or with any other country for that matter in the world is always as per as international laws, norms and conventions,” Prakash said.
He also reiterated India's position that New Delhi “supports freedom of navigation in South China Sea and hopes that all parties to the dispute would abide by the 2002 declaration of conduct in South China Sea.”
The issues are expected to find a place in the Joint Commission Meeting, to be co-chaired by External Affairs Minister S M Krishna along with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Binh Minh, in Hanoi tomorrow.
However, Prakash did not elaborate on the new projects of ONGC which has an investment of about USD 225 million in Vietnam, out of total USD 400 million Indian investment. “This work is in progress,” he said when asked about the new energy projects.
During the Joint Commission Meeting, the two leaders “will undertake a comprehensive review of Indo-Vietnam cooperation in the areas of trade & investment, culture, science, information technology, human resource development, agriculture etc.
Significantly, Krishna's visit also comes close on the heels of an incident of an Indian Navy vessel reportedly being warned by the Chinese Navy off the coast of Vietnam against entering
“Chinese waters” in late July and New Delhi defending freedom of navigation in international waters, including in the South China Sea, and the right of passage in accordance with accepted principles of international law. “These principles should be respected by all,” it has said.
For the JCM, the delegation includes officials from a number of ministries and departments keeping in view India's multifaceted cooperation with Vietnam.
The minister will also inaugurate the Advance Resource Centre, a centre of excellence in the field of IT Training, set up in Hanoi with Indian assistance, during the visit.
Apart from meeting Vietnamese leaders, Krishna's programme includes a visit to the country's business capital Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, in south Vietnam, PTI
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