China’s policy on the South China Sea (Vietnamese call it the East Sea) became more aggressive after Xi Jinping became China’s highest leader in November 2012. We can gauge the magnitude of this aggression by considering how, after coming to…
The 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) is scheduled to take place in January 2021. About 1,600 delegates nationwide will elect the new Party Central Committee of 180 members. In addition to the difficulty in electing…
Vietnam-US warm relations US National Security Advisor Robert C. O’Brien just visited Hanoi on November 20-22. According to the announcement of the Vietnamese side, this visit is to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the US-Vietnam diplomatic relations and to highlight…
Military drills and missile shootings The summer of 2020 saw strong activity by both the US and Chinese navies in the East Sea (South China Sea). Two groups of US aircraft carriers operated together in the South China Sea at…
China’s revised Coast Guard bill gives the country’s Coast Guard forces the right to use state-of-the-art weapons to destroy ships of foreign countries encroaching on China’s waters. Returning to Saigon from an international seminar on the East Sea (South China…
Since winning more than 270 electoral votes, President-elect Joe Biden has contacted leaders of allied countries, pledging to mend partnerships that have been dented over the past few years, and reasserted the US’s commitment to mutual security agreements which have…
Vietnam and other countries participating East Asian Summit did not mention territorial sea disputes in the South China Sea in the Hanoi Declaration in the context of the ASEAN countries focusing on trade and the COVID-19 pandemic, with the conclusion…
China on November 4, 2020, publicly released a draft amendment to allow its China Coast Guard to use weapons in waters that Beijing considers under China’s jurisdiction. According to political observers, the Chinese National People’s Congress will approve it during…
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo just ended his last Asia’s tour to Vietnam on October 30, in which he repeatedly sent a message calling for Asian countries to cooperate with the US in dealing with security threats posed by…
Dr. Le Thu Huong, a senior researcher of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, commented on Vietnam-China relations in the context of increasing tensions in the East Sea (South China Sea), without eliminating the risk of military conflict in the sea.…
