Sea-based economic sectors contribute 10 percent of Vietnam’s gross domestic product (GDP), according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The Liaison Board of Truong Sa Soldiers for the 1984 – 1988 period held a ceremony in the central city of Da Nang on March 14 to commemorate the Vietnam People’s Navy soldiers who fell down on Gac Ma island, part of Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, in 1988.

The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) workshop on implementing the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and other international instruments towards address emerging maritime issues was held in Nha Trang city in the central coastal province of Khanh Hoa on February 26.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has issued a plan to implement the 2018 Law on Vietnam Coast Guard.

Thousands of gifts and hundreds of tonnes of essential goods have been prepared for soldiers and people in the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago on the occasion of the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) festival.

A national flag salute ceremony was held on January 1 in the country's easternmost mainland point of Mui Dien in the south central province of Phu Yen.

The northern province of Quang Ninh enjoyed a bustling year with some 50 cultural, sports and tourism events and around 12.2 million visitors when it hosted the Visit Vietnam Year 2018.

The recent activity of China putting into use observatories, that were built on structures it illegally constructed and renovated in the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago, seriously violates Vietnam's sovereignty over the islands, said spokesperson for the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang.

Vietnam always calls on all concerned parties to avoid militarisation, restrain, implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) fully and effectively, and build a practical and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea, a Vietnamese diplomat has said.

The International Association of Democratic Lawyers (IADL) and the Peace Foundation of Russia have jointly held an international workshop in Moscow to discuss the current situation in the East Sea and feasible solutions to disputes.

Vietnam on August 23 demanded that Taiwan (China) immediately cease all live-fire drills on Ba Binh (Itu Aba) Island in Vietnam's Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago and refrain from such actions in the future.