US, Vietnam say they hope to boost ties as Blinken visits Hanoi

HANOI – Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed a willingness on Saturday to upgrade bilateral ties as the US seeks to balance an increasingly assertive China.

In his first visit to the key South-east Asian country as the top US diplomat,

Mr Blinken kicked off his trip with a meeting with Mr

Chinh.

In brief remarks before their meeting, he said there has been “extraordinary progress” in ties between the two countries during the past decade.

“We have now hope to be able to take it to an even higher level, deepening even further the economic partnerships,” Mr Blinken added, while noting the two nations mark the 10th anniversary of their formal partnership in 2023.

Mr Chinh said both sides were looking to elevate ties “to a new height”, after a phone call last month between US President Joe Biden and the head of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party, Mr Nguyen Phu Trong, a conversation he said yielded  “great success”.

The diplomatic anniversary and the Biden-Trong call could lead to a meeting between the two in July or other high-level meetings, analysts say. It is still unclear, though, when an upgrade of formal ties could be agreed, but Mr Blinken expressed hope it could happen “in the weeks and months ahead”.

Even more unclear is what upgraded ties would entail.

Mr Blinken told reporters security was among the key components of the two countries’ relations, and noted that this was growing, with Washington finalising the shipment of a third naval cutter to support Vietnam’s coast guard.

Washington and US defence companies have openly said they want to bolster their military supplies to Vietnam – so far largely limited to coast guard ships and training aircraft – as the country seeks to diversify away from Russia, which is currently its main supplier.

Mr Blinken’s visit was part of a wider US strategy in South-east Asia to build a coalition to counter China and deter any potential action by Beijing against Taiwan.

Many countries in the region are reluctant to antagonise their giant neighbour, which is not just a military power, but also a key trading partner and source of investment.

For the US, Vietnam is a crucial South-east Asian trading partner that Washington wants to bolster ties with.

But for Hanoi, it has been a difficult balancing act cooperating with Washington without upsetting Beijing, even though Vietnam has been alarmed by China’s increasing claims in the South China Sea.

Diplomatic calculus

The diplomatic calculus is further complicated by the increasingly close relationship between Beijing and Moscow, which in 2022 declared a “no-limits” partnership shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“We highly appreciate the role and responsibility of the US towards the Asia-Pacific,” Mr Chinh said.

Some analysts expressed doubts about the potential upgrade.

“For one thing, there is no need, from Vietnam’s perspective, to unnecessarily antagonise China... Another is that Hanoi wants to avoid appearing openly part of the US Indo-Pacific strategy designed to counter China,” said Rand Corporation senior defence analyst Derek Grossman.

Mr Blinken also broke ground on a new US Embassy compound in Hanoi after meeting the Prime Minister, a project years in the making that he said represents “a significant step” towards strengthening ties.

In his meeting with Mr Chinh, Mr Blinken “emphasised the importance of human rights”, State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel said after the meeting.

Rights groups have regularly raised concerns over the communist country’s treatment of dissidents.

Earlier this week, a Hanoi court sentenced a prominent Vietnamese political activist to six years in prison for conducting anti-state activities, his lawyer said.

After meeting Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Mr Blinken was set to get together with Mr Trong, before he departs on Sunday for Japan to attend a meeting of foreign ministers of the Group of Seven wealthy nations. REUTERS