The Honorable Kofi Annan,
Secretary General of the United Nations
Subject: Our protest of the surrender of Vietnamese national soil to China by the Communist regime in Vietnam
To the esteemed Secretary General,
Since late last year, the people of Vietnam have been shaken by the newly uncovered fact that the Communist regime of Vietnam has signed two secret accords to surrender a portion of Vietnamese sea and land territory to China.
According to historical records, the border between Vietnam and China was drawn up and agreed upon ten centuries ago by the Ly Dynasty of Vietnam and the Sung Dynasty of China in 1084. The border determination was reaffirmed under two treaties signed in 1885 and 1887, by France and the Manchurian Dynasty of China.
Through the 30 years of war ending in 1975, Communist North Vietnam was wholly dependent on China and allowed the latter to build logistical bases well south of the border. Chinese personnel were similarly allowed to settle in these areas inside Vietnam. In 1979, China invaded North Vietnam briefly to "teach Vietnam a lesson". Although both nations have since made tentative peace and resumed diplomatic relations, China unapologetically retained a number of bases on Vietnam's soil.
Not only did the Communist regime of Vietnam fail to ask China to comply with standing border treaty, they went on to sign one new accord with China to redraw the land border on December 30, 1999, and another to reset the sea border on December 25, 2000. These secret agreements ceded to China a portion of land and naval territory belonging to Vietnam. The people of Vietnam were kept in the dark, and the facts did not surface until new border posts were laid into the ground in Vietnam?s northern frontier.
The reason for the United Nations to be concerned, as delineated in the opening words of its Charter, is to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to humankind. To this end, all member nations should practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbors.
In articles 1 and 2, the Charter calls for the friendly development of relations among nations and foster international co-operation. It further maintains that all members shall settle their international disputes by peaceful means in such a manner that international peace and security, and justice, are not endangered.
That the Communist regime of Vietnam signed a secret pact to cede land and naval territories to China could only have two explanations: either Communist Vietnam had functioned as a puppet government to China, or China had coerced Vietnam into giving up her lands. In either scenario, the preternatural act of surrendering national dominion runs counter to the principals of the United Nations. It will cause inevitable friction between two neighboring people and destabilize global peace and security.
The two World Wars of the twentieth century that brought about the creation of the United Nations were born in part from border and territorial disputes. These remain the causes of instability in global hot spots in Asia and Middle East today. The loss of national sovereignty to a neighboring country causes the loss of natural and economic resources and inflicts a grievous wound to national pride that would demand retribution. World peace is not achievable while more powerful countries continue to seek to expand their borders.
With this letter, we officially forward our protest of the two accords on border revision outlined above. We respectfully request that the Secretary General undertake whatever steps necessary, in accordance with the responsibility of his position, to prevent the honorable principles of the United Nations Charter from being violated by one of its principal member nations.
With all due respect,