Vietnam opposes China’s new national map with 9-dash line in East Vietnam Sea

China’s ‘2023 standard map’ that shows the nine-dash line covering Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagos is invalid and violates Vietnam’s sovereignty in the East Vietnam Sea, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Thursday. The nine-dash line was previously drawn up by China to illegally claim its sovereignty over most of the East Vietnam Sea, so the line has been internationally condemned and rejected. Vietnam strongly reiterates its consistent stance on its sovereignty over Hoang Sa and Truong Sa, and resolutely rejects any claims by China based on the unlawful “nine-dash line” in the East Vietnam Sea, Hang stated. After being released by MNR on Monday, the 2023 edition of the ‘standard’ national map of China has triggered reactions across Asia. The Malaysian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday that Malaysia does not recognize China’s claims in the East Vietnam Sea as outlined in the map that covers Malaysia’s maritime area, according to Nikkei Asia.