Her statement was made during a regular press briefing held in Hanoi on August 26 in response to a reporter’s question about the Vietnamese reaction to China conducting military exercises in the northeastern waters of the nation's Hoang Sa archipelago.

“The fact that China’s continued military exercises in the archipelago violate Vietnam's sovereignty over the islands, running counter to the spirit of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), while further complicating the situation. This is detrimental to current negotiations between China and ASEAN on the Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (COC) and the maintenance of a peaceful, stable, and co-operative environment in the area,” the official said.