When was an agreement signed for China 's help ?
Disputes - international : maritime boundary with Cambodia not defined ; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with the People 's Republic of China ( PRC ) , Republic of China ( ROC ) , Malaysia , Philippines , and possibly Brunei ; maritime boundary with Thailand resolved in August 1997 ; maritime boundary dispute with the PRC in the Gulf of Tonkin resolved in 2000 ; Paracel Islands occupied by the PRC but claimed by Vietnam and the ROC ; offshore islands and sections of boundary with Cambodia are in dispute ; agreement on land border with the People 's Republic of China was signed in December 1999 .