When the world is witnessing extremely harmful wars to resolve variations, Vietnam’s dexterity in managing its variations with China with out bloodshed presents an instructive mannequin in diplomacy to take care of a robust neighbour with an expansionist method. Hanoi’s method is predicated on pragmatism and strategic readability. It understands that managing China shouldn’t be a alternative however a everlasting strategic situation. Its broad strategy is to not defeat China however to stay alongside it with out sacrificing its autonomy or nationwide pursuits. Hence, Hanoi’s method is neither submissive nor confrontational. Instead, it’s a calibrated balancing act, combining agency resistance with measured restraint.
There are severe variations between the 2 international locations on a number of points. The fundamental distinction is on territorial claims in the South China Sea (SCS)/East Sea (ES). China claims virtually 90% space of SCS/ES. Its nine-dash line retains on increasing. It has created synthetic islands and turned them into army outposts. To assert its claims, Beijing has modified the normal names of a number of options. This is an ongoing exercise. Beijing’s aggressive patrolling in areas belonging to Vietnam is widespread. In 2014, China positioned an enormous oil rig in waters claimed by Vietnam close to the Paracel Islands. It objected to Vietnam’s drilling operations together with international international locations. Often confrontation takes place. There had been incidents of Beijing forces sinking Vietnam’s fishing boats. However, Vietnam doesn’t enable these incidents to escalate right into a struggle. This restraint, nonetheless, doesn’t suggest acquiescence. Hanoi has firmly resisted China’s expansive claims, upheld UNCLOS, and supported the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration Ruling. Hanoi stays essentially the most vocal opponent of the Chinese unlawful claims.
Beyond maritime disputes, tensions additionally come up from China’s upstream dams on the Mekong River, which have an effect on water flows and agricultural livelihoods in Vietnam’s delta. Hanoi has additionally approached China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) with warning, conscious of potential dangers associated to debt, dependence, and strategic vulnerability.
Differences prolong to broader regional dynamics. While Beijing seeks a China-centric regional order, Hanoi advocates ASEAN centrality and sovereign equality amongst states. On international alignments, China views the US as its principal strategic rival, whereas Vietnam sees engagement with Washington as important for its financial development and safety diversification.
Vietnam’s ties with China have to be seen in the backdrop of Lam’s built-in imaginative and prescient of diplomacy that aligns nationwide safety, financial development, and long-term strategic planning. Vietnam’s international coverage goals to safe stability, appeal to funding, and construct sustainable frameworks for cooperation. He perceives that partnerships with different international locations are central to Hanoi’s aims of creating its manufacturing capabilities, guaranteeing the availability of its power necessities, and accessing new markets. He believes that Vietnam’s improvement can’t happen in isolation: it’s built-in with regional improvement.
While Lam is pursuing Bamboo diplomacy, he has elevated it to a complete doctrine of statecraft, mixing safety, financial coverage, and worldwide engagement with strategic confidence. Vietnam’s statecraft beneath him establishes that constructive engagement between totally different techniques stays achievable. It presents a counter-model to the zero-sum rivalries of main powers.
Lam’s pragmatic diplomacy additionally understands sure limits. First, Vietnam alone can’t militarily steadiness China. Second, open alignment towards China shouldn’t be crucial in view of its financial ties. Third, wars have large value, which might critically harm its ongoing improvement progress.
Hence, his coverage is to diplomatically handle the variations with China, whereas sustaining its independence. It is predicated on three parts. First, interact China to keep away from battle or escalation of stress. The party-to-party and govt.-to-govt. hyperlinks and ASEAN construction are skilfully used. Second, diversify partnerships to keep away from over-dependence. Vietnam now has strategic partnership with 38 international locations. This creates counterweights with out formal containment. Third, assert sovereignty and strategic autonomy with out upsetting China.
The telephonic dialog in January between Lam and Xi Jinping illustrates how the previous is managing Beijing. Describing Vietnam’s priorities determined on the 14th National Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party, Lam said that Vietnam is set to construct a peaceable, unbiased, democratic, affluent, civilised and joyful nation, steadily advancing in direction of socialism in a brand new period of improvement. He underscored Vietnam’s unwavering dedication to nationwide independence and socialism, a people-centred improvement method, a brand new development mannequin and an unbiased, self-reliant international coverage of peace, friendship, cooperation and improvement, alongside diversification and multilateralisation of exterior relations. He known as for breakthroughs in sensible cooperation, urging expanded imports (particularly of Vietnamese agricultural and aquatic merchandise), prioritisation of railway cooperation, enhanced high-quality funding tied to know-how switch and workforce coaching and enhanced science and know-how cooperation. Thus, he confused the significance of nationwide pursuits.
He additionally reaffirmed that Vietnam would proceed to prioritise creating relations with China, emphasising that Vietnam-China ties ought to proceed to function a secure, long-term pillar with deep strategic hyperlinks to point that there was no change in Hanoi’s method towards Beijing. He assured Vietnam’s adherence to “One China” coverage and that Vietnam held excessive regard for China’s function as a accountable main nation for regional and international peace and improvement. He proposed elevating political belief to information complete cooperation.
Lam, in an article in April 2025, said the above dimensions however prevented any point out of controversial points. His administration of China displays his depth of understanding of bilateral points and realism. He is aware of that a few of the points needn’t be over confused in bilateral talks, whereas making one of the best use of obtainable choices to fulfill Hanoi’s necessities of know-how, commerce and funding and obtain its aims of 2030. His stress on ASEAN was clearly indicated by the truth that he went to ASEAN international locations (Indonesia and Singapore) after taking on because the General Secretary of VCP. Later he went to Central Asia, North Korea and Russia.
In view of the above, Lam’s forthcoming go to in mid-April to Beijing is more likely to deal with reinforcing the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with agreements on commerce, funding and technological cooperation. While considerations could also be raised, he would be certain that they might not disturb general ties to utilise out there alternatives to fulfill Vietnam’s necessities. Lam’s statecraft is pushing steadily Hanoi’s ascent as a assured center energy able to navigating a fancy international surroundings and crafting outcomes to attain its aims, whereas avoiding provocation that may escalate stress.
Disclaimer
Views expressed above are the writer’s personal.
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