Hanoi, July 14 -- Phan reiterated Viet Nam's consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralization of external relations, as well as its "Four No's" defense policy.

The "four nos" defense policy means: no partaking in military alliances, no siding with one country to act against another, no foreign military bases in the Vietnamese territory or using Viet Nam as leverage to counteract other countries, and no using force or threatening to use force in international relations.

He affirmed the country's principled stance that disputes in the East Sea must be resolved via peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). ...