Can Vietnam Balance U.S. and China Relations Amid South China Sea Disputes? | Taiwan Talks EP468

Vietnamese President To Lam, who also serves as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, recently made a state visit to China, where he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. During their meeting, the two leaders signed agreements for the construction of a cross-border railway and agreed to strengthen security cooperation. How will these developments affect geopolitical dynamics in the Indo-Pacific region? In this episode of “Taiwan Talks,” we discuss what To Lam’s state visit indicates about Vietnam’s diplomatic stance, how U.S.-China-Vietnam relations are changing, and how economic factors impact Vietnam’s China policy. Furthermore, we examine Vietnam’s joint coast guard drills with the Philippines, Vietnam’s stance on territorial disputes in the South China Sea, and its land reclamation efforts in the region.

Our guests are:

Yen Chen-shen
National Chengchi University Professor of Political Science

Huỳnh Tâm Sáng
Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City Lecturer

Chapters
00:00:00 – Introduction
00:00:50 – Does To Lam’s visit Signal Shifting U.S.-China-Vietnam Dynamic?
00:06:02 – Is economic reliance strengthening Vietnam-China relations?
00:09:22 – U.S. Strategy on Vietnamese relations
00:12:52 – Vietnam’s “Bamboo Diplomacy”
00:14:05 – How Vietnam’s China Ties May Affect Philippines relations
00:16:49 – Vietnam-Philippines Joint Coast Guard Exercises
00:20:12 – Land Reclamation and Disputes in South China Sea
00:23:51 – How does Vietnam see Spratly and Paracel Islands?