HO CHI MINH’S IDEOLOGY ON PROTECTING VIETNAM’S SOVEREIGNTY OVER SEA AND ISLANDS(*)

Abstract

Sea and islands aresacred and inviolable parts of territory of  anycoastal states. Vietnam is located at the gateway to the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), so the sea and islands play an important role in the country’s economy, politics, culture, national defense, security, and foreign affairs. During hislifetime, Ho Chi Minh not only specifiedthe potential and economic advantages of Vietnam’s sea and islands, but also had a special interest in the protection of the sovereignty over the sacred sea and islands. Thispaper analyzes aspects of Ho Chi Minh’s ideology on the protection of the sovereignty over the sea and islands with the following contents: the position and the importance of the sea and island protection; forces involved in the task of protecting the sovereignty over the sea and islands; the principles of protecting the sovereignty over the sea and islands of Vietnam.