The land border line between Vietnam and China is 1,449.566km long, in which there are 393.914km running along rivers and streams which are adjacent between 7 Vietnamese provinces of Điện Biên, Lai Châu, Lào Cai, Hà Giang, Cao Bằng, Lạng Sơn and Quảng Ninh and Yunnan province and the Autonomous Region of the Guangxi Zhuang ethnic of China. The border area has a relatively complex topographical structure with large degree of division, gradually sloping down from West to East to the system of rivers and streams here that runs from Northwest to Southeast with less value of water navigation. It depends on season and on each section that the water level now lowers now rises high, with the swift current that causes land erosion and the change of flow, leading to the change of the terrain of the river bed. This region has also some minerals being studied, but in general the mines have got poor deposits with no prospect of commercial exploitation. This is also the region of good prospect of forest resources. However, due to the unplanned exploitation and the state of the slash and burn farming that the coverage of forests has declined seriously, changing the river flows and causing land erosion and frequent flash floods have caused direct difficulties to the inhabitants in both the mountainous and delta areas.


There are 9 pairs of Vietnam-China border gates now:

            Vietnam’s border gates                                  China’s border gates                                  
            Ma Lù Thàng                                                Kim Thủy Hà
            Lào Cai (road)                                              Hekou (road)
            Lào Cai (railroad)                                         Hekou (railroad)
            Thanh Thủy                                                  Tianbao
            Trà Lĩnh                                                        Long Bang
            Tà Lùng                                                       Thủy Khẩu
            Đồng Đăng (railroad)                                   Pingxiang (railroad)
            Hữu Nghị                                                    Youyi Guan
            Móng Cái                                                    Dongxing

It is unanimously agreed by the two sides to open more pairs of border gates when condition permitting:


Vietnam’s border gate            China’s border gate    

    A Pa Chải                        Long Phú
    U Ma Tu Khoàng             Bình Hà
    Mường Khương               Xiao Tou
    Xín Mần                          Đô Long
    Phó Bảng                        Đổng Cán
    Săm Pun                         Điền Bồng
    Sóc Giang                       Bình Mãng
    Pò Peo                           Nhạc Vu
    Lý Vạn                          Thạc Long
    Hạ Lang                        Khoa Giáp
    Bình Nghi                      Bình Nghi Quan
    Chi Ma                         Ái Điểm
    Hoành Mô                    Động Trung

On November 18, 2009, the two countries signed the Protocol on border demarcation and marker planting, the Agreement on the Regulation on Border Management and the Agreement on Border Gates and the Regulation on Land Border Gates between Vietnam and China, marking the fact that the two countries had completed the process of settling the land border issue. These three official documents took effect on July 14, 2010. In this outline, it systematically introduces the process of settling the land border issue between Vietnam and China.

The process of settling the land border issue between Vietnam and China has gone through large landmarks: (i) negotiating and signing of the Treaty on Land Border between Vietnam and China; (ii) Deploying and completing of demarcation and marker planting in the field; (iii) negotiating and signing of three important documents relating to the Vietnam-China land border.

I/ Negotiating and signing of the Treaty on Land Border between Vietnam and China

From late 19th century the Vietnam-China border line was planned in the Convention on Planning the border on June 26, 1887 and the added Convention on June 20, 1895 signed between France and the Qing dynasty (China). However, after over 100 years, affected by climatic conditions and the political and social unheavals in each country as well as in the relations between the two countries, there is a change in the Vietnam-China border line.

In the 1970s of the 20th century, Vietnam and China having followed the goal of determining a clear border line had conducted 3 negotiations to settle the land border issue, and after that, the negotiations were interrupted due to the historical events. The negotiation was reconnected right after the normalization of the relations between Vietnam and China in 1991.

In October 1993, the two sides signed the Agreement on the fundamental principles to settle the border issues between Vietnam and China. Accordingly, the two sides agreed on the basis of the principles of the international law and realities to the friendship consultation in order settle the land border issue between Vietnam and China, taking the 1887 and 1895 France-Qing dynasty Treaty and the attached documents and maps on border demarcation and marker planting as a base to re-determine the Vietnam-China border line.

After 8 years of persistent negotiations, on December 30, 1999, in Hanoi, on behalf of the two States, Vice Premier cum Foreign Minister Nguyễn Mạnh Cầm of Vietnam and Foreign Minister of China Tang Jiaxuan signed the Treaty on Land Border between Vietnam and China, laying a foundation on building the border line of peace and long-term stability between the two countries.

The 1999 Treaty is of great significance, an important event in the history of the Vietnam-China relations, particularly the 1999 Treaty has recognized the whole direction of the Vietnam-China border line from West to East and become the legal base for the demarcation and marker planting on the Vietnam-China land border.

However, the 1999 Treaty has only determined the border line in wordings and on the map. To exercise the national sovereignty, protect and manage the territory in the field, the two sides need to start the border demarcation and marker planting, turning the Treaty’s wordings and maps into the field and together determine and mark clearly each position for the marker and draw the accurate border line in the field.

II. The process of demarcation and marker planting

1/ Right after singing the Treaty on Land Border between Vietnam and China, the two sides set up the Joint Committee of Land Border Demarcation and Marker Planting between Vietnam and China; agreed to divide the Vietnam-China border line into 12 sections and assign them to 12 joint groups to start the demarcation and marker planting in the field.

In December 2001, the two sides started to plant the first marker at Móng Cái border gate (Quảng Ninh-Vietnam) – Dongxing (Guangxi-China). From October 2002, the two sides had simultaneously deployed the marker planting on the whole Vietnam-China border line.

For the whole 8 years, the two sides had together made efforts to settle the problems in the field and in the negotiations in the spirit of sympathy and pay attention to each other’s concern in order to find a fair solution suitable to the wordings and spirit of the 1999 Treaty. The two sides had conducted 13 rounds of negotiation at the Governmental level on the territorial border and had a lot of meetings of the head of the two delegations; 31 rounds of negotiation at the Chairman level of the Joint Committee of demarcation and marker planting. It got ever more difficult and complex when the negotiation came to the ending stage. Only in 2008, the two sides conducted 11 rounds of negotiation at the Chairman level of the Joint Committee, in which the shortest round lasted 9 days, the longest round lasted 23 days and the longest session continued 30 hours without a break.

On December 31, 2008, the two sides had settled once and for all the existing problems, completing the demarcation and marker planting in the whole land border line between Vietnam and China. The heads of the two negotiation delegations at the Governmental level on the territorial border released a Joint Statement on the scheduled completion of the demarcation and marker planting work on the Vietnam-China land border as agreed upon by the senior leaders of the two countries.

2/ The result: The two sides had demarcated completely the whole land border line between Vietnam and China with the length of 1,449.566km; planted the total 1,971 markers (in which there is 01 marker at the crossroad of Vietnam-China-Laos; 1,548 main markers and 422 auxiliary markers). This marker system has been marked, recognized and described in conformity with the practical terrain in an objective, scientific and detailed manner. If it compares to other border line of other countries in the world, the Vietnam-China land border line is judged as having the densest and clearest degree of markers and as being determined with the modern method, guaranteeing the faithfulness and sustainability.

The above-said result is satisfactory, reasonable and rational, meeting the requirements of the two sides, conforming to the fundamental principles as agreed upon by the two sides. The border line determined in the field is fundamentally conforming to the border line in the 1999 Treaty on the land border between Vietnam and China. As for some places, the two sides had adjusted in the principle of balancing the interests and land areas in order to facilitate the management without causing any upsets to the life of the border inhabitants.

On February 23, 2009, Vietnam and China ceremoniously organized the celebration on the occasion of the completion of land border demarcation and marker planting between Vietnam and China at the Friendship border gate. This was an important event for not only Vietnam and the Vietnam and China relations, but for the whole region as well.

III. The process of negotiation, signing and ratification of the documents on demarcation and marker planting

Right after the completion of demarcation and marker planting, entering 2009 Vietnam and China intensified the negotiation on three documents: The Protocol on border demarcation and marker planting, the Agreement on regulation on land border management and the Agreement on border gates and regulation on management of the Vietnam-China land border gates. With the common efforts of the two sides, on November 18, 2009 in Beijing, the two sides officially signed the said three documents, marking the completion by the two countries of settling the land border issue.

And then the two sides intensified the completion of the procedures on ratification. On July 14, 2010, at the Thanh Thủy (Hà Giang-Vietnam) – Tianbao (Yunnan-China) border gate area, the two sides organized a ceremony to announce the official effect of the above-said documents.

The three documents including the Protocol on demarcation and marker planting, the Agreement on regulation on border management, the Agreement on border gates and regulation on management of the Vietnam-China land border gates together with the 1999 Treaty on Vietnam-China Land Border, have formed the most complete set of the files on the Vietnam-China land border. These documents shall replace the 1887 and 1895 France-Qing Treaty and the temporary Agreement on settling the Vietnam-China border affairs signed by the two Governments in 1991. The difference of these new documents in comparison with the previous documents on the Vietnam-China land border line is reflected in some following points:

Firstly, in the new documents, each section of the border, each border marker between the two countries is reflected in the clearest way not only in the wordings but in the charts and maps as well, helping people recognize easily the border line. These documents also stipulate clearly the content of specific things for the functional agencies in management and protection of the border line and markers.

Secondly, the Agreement on regulation on border management stipulates in a more detailed way the management, protection, exploitation and use of the water source of rivers and streams; the traveling across the border by humans, facilities and goods; the regulation on combining work relating to the maintenance and guarantee of security and order in the border areas. Attached to the Agreement are 18 appendices stipulating all sorts of papers in exchange of the two sides in the process of handling the affairs in the border areas of the two countries.

Thirdly, the Agreement on border management has been added with a lot of details, at the same time pointed out the principles and specific measures in settling each border-related problem, including the arising problems such as the measures to settle the illegal immigration; the principles on the constructions in the border water areas, the border areas or repair and restoration of border markers and so on.

Fourthly, in the Agreement on border management, there is a completely new content: it is the provision on the establishment of the Joint Committee of the Vietnam-China land border to co-ordinate and supervise the deployment of the border management; the Agreement stipulates that the Vietnam-China border is divided into 8 sections and each side sends 8 representatives to take charge of management.

Particularly the three documents on the land border between Vietnam and China allows the two sides to apply the modern mode of management, including the digital technology in the border management, facilitating the deployment by the relevant agencies of the two countries to deploy the border work in an effective and scientific way so as to be able to together build the Vietnam-China land border line into the line of peace, friendship, stability and cooperation. With this new border line, the friendly relations and cooperation between Vietnam and China will have more conditions to vigorously develop, thus meeting the requirements and aspirations of the people of the two countries.

IV. Advantages and difficulties in settling the land border issue between Vietnam and China

The process of settling the land border issue with China is a long, complex and sensitive process. In the process of deployment, there were both advantages and difficulties.

1/ Advantages:

- The negotiations on settling the existing issues as well as the deployment of border demarcation and marker planting had always received the care and close guidance of the leaders of the Parties and the Governments of the two countries. The Political Bureau, the Secretariat and the Government Prime Minister had convened a lot of meetings to hear the situation reports and given their opinions guiding the negotiations. Many senior leaders had made field surveys in person to grasp the situation and encourage the forces getting involved in the border demarcation and marker planting.

- The ministries, branches and localities of Vietnam were highly conscious and aware of the high sense of responsibilities towards the assigned tasks; always combined harmoniously their job so as to together fulfill their own tasks. Particularly in the process of the field work, the border demarcation and marker planting groups had received enthusiastic support and assistance of the border guard units stationed in the area and of the local people and administrations in the border areas. The border demarcation and marker planting work had also received the care and encouragement of the people at home and abroad. This was the moral support and encouragement of utter importance to help the negotiation delegation on the territorial border and the border demarcation and marker planting groups overcome difficulties and obstacles to fulfill the important historic tasks entrusted to them by the Party, Government and people.

2. Difficulties:

The process of negotiation and deployment of border demarcation and marker planting in the Vietnam-China land border had met with no less difficulties:

    Firstly, it was the unclearness between the wordings in the Treaty and the field. The 1999 Treaty only described the border line with the wordings drawn on the topographical map with the scale of 1/50,000. The border line on the map is only a drawn line, so when it was transferred to the field, it could be tens or even hundreds of meters of deviation. The non-uniformity between the wordings of the Treaty and the attached map and the field led to disagreement to the direction of the border line, creating the unsolved areas that need the negotiation by the two sides.

    Secondly, the Vietnam-China border has the characteristics rarely seen in the border lines among the countries. It is the inhabitants living and farming in an overlapping way in the border areas for generations. In some areas, border inhabitants have the age-old racial relations, so their visits to each other have happened so frequently. In some areas, this side managed more parts of the other side. In these cases, the two sides had negotiated to settle the issue in such a way as to limit to the lowest level the impact on the life and production of these border inhabitants.

    Thirdly, the Vietnam-China land border demarcation and marker planting work was mainly carried out in the areas with the extremely complex terrain with great dividing degree (high mountains, sloppy hills), extremely harsh climatic conditions (jungles, flash floods), poor infrastructure (in many remote areas, there was no motorized roads), so building materials, food, machines and equipment were mostly transported by humans to the positions for marker planting. Moreover, in many areas there were still unexploded mines and obstructions left behind by the war.

For the past 35 years since the two countries had officially conducted the negotiations on settlement of the land border issue, the two sides had conducted over 3,000 negotiations, small and big, with the total time of one million working hours to be able to have the results of building the Vietnam-China land border of peace, friendship and long-term stability between the two countries.

V. The significance of the settlement of the Vietnam-China land border issue

The final settlement of the Vietnam-China land border issue is an event of historic significance in the relations between the two countries. For the first time in history, the two countries have defined a clear-cut land border line with a system of modern markers, laying a firm foundation for the construction of the Vietnam-China border line into the line of peace, friendship, long-term stability, cooperation and development, ushering in a new chapter in the history of the Vietnam-China relations. The significance of the settlement of the land border issue is reflected in the following points:

Firstly, two out of three major issues left behind by history in the Vietnam-China relations have been resolved. It is the final settlement of the land border issue and the defining of the Tonkin Gulf and the remaining issue that needs being resolved is the East Sea issue. The experience drawn from the settlement of the land border issue is hoped to create the basis for the negotiation on settlement of the sea issue between the two countries.

Secondly, the determination of a clear-cut Vietnam-China land border line creates a basis for the functional agencies and branches to start their border management in an effective way, thus preventing the state of encroaching farming and residence due to the lack of knowledge and understanding about the border line; opening up a new opportunity for the development of each country; particularly creating conditions for the border localities of the two sides to expand the economic cooperation and development and enhance the friendly exchanges.

Thirdly, the completion of the settlement of the land border issue is the vivid manifestation of the “comprehensive strategic cooperative relations and partnerships” between Vietnam and China, making a contribution to enhancing the trust between the two sides, creating a new motive force to push ahead the ever stronger and firmer development of the Vietnam-China relations.

Fourthly, on the international and regional plane, the final settlement of the Vietnam-China land border issue is a practical contribution to peace, stability and development in the region, contributing to reaffirming the common principles of international law: to settle the territorial border issues by peaceful means; without using force or threatening to use force in settling international disputes./.