Dr Bharti Chhibber
With Vietnam joining BRICS as a partner country, it has become the fourth ASEAN state in BRICS, following Indonesia which is a member and Malaysia and Thailand as partner countries. The partnership not only adds to Vietnam’s diplomatic profile but also amplifies economic opportunities for wider trade, investment, and technological cooperation with other members and partners. In the evolving geopolitics, Vietnam’s diversifying international collaborations resonates with its widely recognized ‘Bamboo diplomacy’. Vietnam’s diplomatic achievements from the Doi Moi reform in 1986 and foreign diplomacy of the Ho Chi Minh era, are reflected in the contemporary success of bamboo diplomacy of Vietnam.
As Vietnam’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Deputy Prime Minister Mr Bui Thanh Son said an open foreign policy creates favourable conditions for Vietnam. Asian culture is about safeguarding independence and sovereignty which bamboo diplomacy signifies. A high number of foreign visits by Vietnamese leaders to strategic and neighbouring partners has built trust and consolidated cooperation in wider domains. It has emerged as an attractive destination for foreign investors and diversifying supply chains.
Vietnam’s foreign diplomacy has added to its international position both in ASEAN and other international organizations. Of late Vietnam has served as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, Vice Chair of the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, and member of the UN Human Rights Council. It has also contributed to the UN peacekeeping operations. It is the result of Vietnam’s foreign diplomacy that in the security realm, naval operations in the Pacific involve Vietnam whether in the form of port visits or capacity-building by countries including the United States, India, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Japan. Many states have supported freedom of navigation, and peaceful resolution of disputes in compliance with the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea as pursued by Vietnam in the South China Sea.
Vietnam’s partner status with BRICS has the potential to further solidify bilateral and multilateral collaboration between India and Vietnam. Sharing close historical and cultural ties, India and Vietnam have come a long way since the formal establishment of diplomatic relations in 1972. The deepening of bilateral collaboration from ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ in 2016 to Joint Vision for Peace, Prospects and People adopted in 2020 are testament to their growing engagements. The two countries are also working together in the realm of security including high-level visits and defence policy dialogues. In 2023, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam Mr. Bui Thanh Son and External Affairs Minister of India Dr. S. Jaishankar co-chaired the Vietnam-India Joint Committee on Economic, Trade, Science and Technology Cooperation meeting in Hanoi. They agreed to continue to build up security cooperation as envisaged in the Joint Vision Statement on the Vietnam-India Defence Partnership until 2030.
Cooperation received another impetus with a new plan of action which was adopted during the Prime Minister of Vietnam Mr Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to India at the invitation of our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in August 2024. India and Vietnam signed agreements on strengthening comprehensive strategic partnerships, cooperation in customs capacity building, radio and television, and agriculture. They also agreed on a US$ 300 million credit line for Vietnam to enhance its maritime security asserting the message of a free and rules-based Indo-Pacific. The 4th India-Vietnam Policy Planning Dialogue was held in New Delhi in March this year where issues of regional and global importance including the Indo-Pacific, reforms in multilateral institutions, and growth in the global South were discussed.
Likewise, joint military exercise VINBAX was instituted in 2018 as an annual event conducted alternately in India and Vietnam to promote defence cooperation between the two armies and share best practices. The 5th Edition “VINBAX 2024” was conducted in India to enhance joint military capability in the deployment of Engineer Companies and Medical Teams for engineering tasks as part of United Nations Peacekeeping Operations. Earlier in 2023, India also gifted indigenous missile corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam highlighting the strong strategic partnership between the two countries.
In the economic realm, from $200 million in the year 2000, bilateral trade between India and Vietnam has reached about US$15 billion. The two countries are now keen to reach the US$20 billion mark. Other significant areas of cooperation are the implementation of the Framework Agreement on Agricultural Cooperation to export fruit products to each other’s markets, and digital technology. There is regular interaction through trade fairs and exhibitions to strengthen the trade ties between the two countries. In addition, within the Mekong Ganga Cooperation framework, India is working on Quick Impact Projects in Vietnam for capacity building at the community level.
Spiritualism, cultural diplomacy and soft power are India’s forte and India and Vietnam share the heritage of Buddhism creating a strong bond between the two. Recently, the Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha from Sarnath, India arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam as part of the UN Day of Vesak celebrations with an Indian delegation led by Indian Union Minister of Parliamentary and Minority Affairs Shri Kiren Rijiju. The holy relics returned to India on 3rd June after a month-long exposition tour across Vietnam.
Moreover, the Archaeological Survey of India is also aiding the conservation and restoration of the ‘My Son’ in Quang Nam Province of Vietnam which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. Two-way tourism is another area where there is significant potential. Vietnam is already emerging as one of the top destinations for Indian tourists with direct flights from Indian cities. The Buddhist circuit in India can be further promoted as Spiritual Tourism not only for the people of Vietnam but wider Asian countries. Furthermore, in line with its Act East Policy, India launched Operation Sadbhav to provide Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief to countries affected by catastrophic flooding caused by Typhoon Yagi. India sent a 35-ton consignment to Vietnam with essential things such as water purification equipment, blankets, solar lanterns and kitchen utensils.
This highlights how the two Asian states are vibrantly cooperating in multifaceted areas both bilaterally and multilaterally. Both can further collaborate in building supply chain resilience, digital economy, green growth and cyberspace initiatives. The economic association can be augmented in the fields of medical tourism and oil & gas paving the way for an alternative energy supply chain. India and Vietnam’s interests intertwine as they share many similarities in their strategic outlook. Both are working on independent foreign policy and self-reliance based on national interests without being part of any military alliance. India and Vietnam can additionally reinforce their cooperation in the Indo-Pacific strategy frameworks.
The author is a foreign policy & environment expert and teaches international relations at the University of Delhi.
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