As soon as
sent away the top leaders of the United States and Russia, one of Vietnam's "four carriages", Prime Minister Pham Minh Zheng, announced his visit to China. The most critical reason why Vietnam is so active is that they want to confront China first on a major event.
Recently, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam announced that Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Zheng is about to embark on a four-day visit to China and will hold talks and bilateral meetings with the Chinese side to further strengthen political mutual trust between the two countries.
Vietnam revealed that during this visit to China, Pham Minh-zheng will attend the 15th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of New Leaders in Dalian, Liaoning Province, China. This conference will provide Vietnam with a promotional opportunity and help Vietnam become a more attractive investment destination.
Vietnam also said that Pham Minh Zheng is one of the few government leaders who has been invited by the World Economic Forum and the host China to participate in this event for two consecutive years. This undoubtedly shows that they attach great importance to Vietnam’s status, role and contribution to global economic growth, as well as Vietnam’s vision for future economic development. Vietnam will also take this opportunity to gain an in-depth understanding of new issues, new trends and new dynamics in the global economy, while strengthening exchanges and relations with other countries, partners and international organizations.
However, in addition to economic cooperation, Fan Mingzheng also has another important event during his trip, which he urgently needs to discuss with China. Not long ago, Vietnam received visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Assistant Secretary of State Conda. For Vietnam, which has always pursued "bamboo diplomacy", it is natural that it cannot forget to "open air" with China at this time.
In fact, Putin's visit to Vietnam has been planned for a long time and is not considered an "emergency". However, the reason why the United States sent people to Vietnam immediately was because of concerns about the further development of relations between Vietnam and Russia. For this reason, the United States has put pressure on him many times, but Vietnam has turned a deaf ear to it and still gave Putin the highest standard of treatment.
During Putin’s visit, Russia and Vietnam deepened their comprehensive strategic partnership. Vietnam also stated that Vietnam has always regarded Russia as one of its priority partners in foreign policy, and Putin's visit will also become an important milestone in the relationship between the two countries.
This situation is naturally something the US does not want to see. However, the Biden administration is not willing to give up easily on Vietnam, which has great potential, so it quickly sent people to visit Vietnam to express its stance. After arriving in Vietnam, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Conda immediately reiterated the United States' commitment to support Vietnam and said that the "trust" between the two countries has never been stronger and closer than it is now.
Kangda also said that the upgrade of U.S.-Vietnam relations is a "historically important decision." The United States hopes to maintain this development momentum and ensure that all agreements reached by the two parties can be implemented smoothly.
However, when expressing his stance on Vietnam, Kangda did not forget to mention China. He said that in the view of the United States, China's recent behavior in the conflict at Ren'ai Reef in the South China Sea was quite "irresponsible" and highly "aggressive and dangerous." On this occasion, the United States will continue to "stand firmly" with its Philippine allies.
China refuted this at the first opportunity. The Chinese Embassy in Vietnam directly stated that China’s sovereignty and jurisdiction over islands in the South China Sea, including Ren’ai Reef, are indisputable and have sufficient historical and legal basis. The various law enforcement and inspection activities carried out by China in the region are also in compliance with relevant provisions of international law.
At the same time, in response to the US's confusing remarks, China also bluntly pointed out that the various measures taken by the US are only for its own geopolitical interests. As a country outside the region, the United States has not only repeatedly intervened in South China Sea issues, but has also blatantly "supported" the Philippines' wrong actions. This is truly confusing right and wrong, provoking confrontation, and making the situation in the South China Sea even more tense.
In this case, Vietnam's attitude is very critical. Vietnam immediately proved to China that these provocative remarks involving the South China Sea were just one-sided words from the United States and had nothing to do with Vietnam. In fact, before Kangda visited Vietnam, Vietnam had already expressed its position on the South China Sea issue.Of course, Vietnam did not choose to stand with the United States and the Philippines.
Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs called on China and the Philippines to exercise maximum restraint on the Second Thomas Shoal issue. At the same time, all parties should respect the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and earnestly and comprehensively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. In other words, on this issue, the positions of China and Vietnam are highly consistent.
Under such circumstances, as soon as Kangda left, Vietnam quickly announced the arrangements for Fan Mingzheng's visit to China, probably in an effort to "clear the relationship." After all, as one of the "four carriages" of the Vietnamese leadership, Pham Minh Zheng's visit is definitely considered a heavyweight, which directly reflects Vietnam's sincerity. The four-day visit also allowed Fan Mingzheng to express his feelings to China one by one.
In fact, Vietnam also has certain differences with China on the South China Sea issue. However, Vietnam can see the situation clearly, grasp the scale of the differences between the two sides, and avoid going to extremes, thereby preventing such differences from affecting the close cooperation and profound relations between China and Vietnam.
At the same time, Vietnam has also been actively promoting cooperation in the South China Sea and the formulation of the "South China Sea Code of Conduct", and this has further highlighted the Philippines' decision-making errors. After all, among ASEAN countries, only the Philippines is still ignoring the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, creating regional conflicts and conflicts, and insisting on putting relevant countries in danger.
In fact, after years of practicing “bamboo diplomacy”, Vietnam has very rich experience. They also understand that whether they are developing U.S.-Vietnam or Russia-Vietnam relations, they cannot completely bypass China. Vietnam has also emphasized many times that developing relations with China is Vietnam's top diplomatic priority.
In other words, visiting China at this time is the most suitable choice for Vietnam. While actively expressing its stance to China, it also allows Vietnam's "balanced diplomacy" to gain a firm foothold again.
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