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Vietnam Rises as Middle Power at Defense Summit: Southeast Asia - Bloomberg
U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel meets his Vietnamese counterpart Phung Quang Thanh in Brunei today, as the competition for oil, fish and influence puts Vietnam in focus as an emerging middle power in Southeast Asia.
When Hagel last visited the region, Vietnam warned that miscalculations over territorial spats in the South China Sea could disrupt huge trade flows and have global consequences.
Almost three months later, as Hagel sits down for individual talks with defense ministers ahead of a broader gathering tomorrow of officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, plus China, Japan and South Korea, countries continue to vie for access in the disputed waters.
That race for resources, and a broader push for influence in the region, has the bigger powers looking to shore up relationships with smaller countries. Since 2010, when the first ADMM-Plus meeting was held in Hanoi, Vietnams role has come to the fore under the U.S.s strategic shift to Asia and as China expands its reach. For China, one barrier to warmer ties with Vietnam is territorial; for the U.S., it is Vietnams human rights record.
Vietnam is increasingly considered a significant player in the region given its location, developing economy and young population, said Ralf Emmers, an associate professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. That puts Vietnam in a delicate spot, he said. The Vietnamese dont want to come across as a tacit ally of the U.S. because they want to preserve good relations with China. They dont want to choose.
State Visits
Hagel and senior defense officials from China were in the audience when Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung issued his warning over the South China Sea at a forum in Singapore from May 31 to June 2. Weeks later, Vietnam President Truong Tan Sang met President Xi Jinping in Beijing, where they agreed to set up a hot-line to defuse territorial disputes and expand an agreement to jointly explore for oil in the Gulf of Tonkin.
Sang then traveled to the U.S. in July, where he met President Barack Obama to discuss working to boost maritime security.
Warmer relations between Vietnam and the U.S. have raised some eyebrows in Beijing, said Le Hong Hiep, a lecturer at Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City.
U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel meets his Vietnamese counterpart Phung Quang Thanh in Brunei today, as the competition for oil, fish and influence puts Vietnam in focus as an emerging middle power in Southeast Asia.
When Hagel last visited the region, Vietnam warned that miscalculations over territorial spats in the South China Sea could disrupt huge trade flows and have global consequences.
Almost three months later, as Hagel sits down for individual talks with defense ministers ahead of a broader gathering tomorrow of officials from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, plus China, Japan and South Korea, countries continue to vie for access in the disputed waters.
That race for resources, and a broader push for influence in the region, has the bigger powers looking to shore up relationships with smaller countries. Since 2010, when the first ADMM-Plus meeting was held in Hanoi, Vietnams role has come to the fore under the U.S.s strategic shift to Asia and as China expands its reach. For China, one barrier to warmer ties with Vietnam is territorial; for the U.S., it is Vietnams human rights record.
Vietnam is increasingly considered a significant player in the region given its location, developing economy and young population, said Ralf Emmers, an associate professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore. That puts Vietnam in a delicate spot, he said. The Vietnamese dont want to come across as a tacit ally of the U.S. because they want to preserve good relations with China. They dont want to choose.
State Visits
Hagel and senior defense officials from China were in the audience when Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung issued his warning over the South China Sea at a forum in Singapore from May 31 to June 2. Weeks later, Vietnam President Truong Tan Sang met President Xi Jinping in Beijing, where they agreed to set up a hot-line to defuse territorial disputes and expand an agreement to jointly explore for oil in the Gulf of Tonkin.
Sang then traveled to the U.S. in July, where he met President Barack Obama to discuss working to boost maritime security.
Warmer relations between Vietnam and the U.S. have raised some eyebrows in Beijing, said Le Hong Hiep, a lecturer at Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City.
