U.S. President Joe Biden, on his visit to Vietnam, emphasized that he is not trying to start a “cold war” with China, saying that his aim is to establish stability around the world by developing ties with Vietnam and other Asian countries.
Biden and the Communist Party of Vietnam (VKP) General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong agreed to raise the level of relations between the two countries to “comprehensive strategic partnership”. According to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA), Biden went to Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, after the G20 Summit in India, and met with VKP Secretary General Nguyen Phu Trong.
The two leaders, in a joint press statement issued after their meeting, announced that they accepted a joint statement on raising the level of relations between the two countries to “comprehensive strategic partnership”. Biden stated that he was pleased with the increase in the level of relations and emphasized that this is an important step to expand economic relations between the USA and Vietnam.
Stating that cooperation in critical and emerging technologies, especially in creating a more durable chip supply chain, will deepen, Biden said that both countries have made great efforts to bring relations to this point. Biden pointed out that he was looking forward to opening a new page in the relations between the two countries and that this visit was of historical importance for the Indo-Pacific region and the world. Vietnamese leader Nguyen Phu Trong emphasized that the two countries agreed that they have made strong and effective progress since normalizing their relations and establishing their “comprehensive partnership”.
Stating that thanks to the new partnership, relations between the USA and Vietnam will be raised to a higher level by encouraging economic, commercial and investment cooperation, Nguyen Phu Trong said that this cooperation of the two countries is beneficial for the whole world.
“We Are Not Trying To Start A Cold War With China”
US President Joe Biden answered questions from members of the press in the capital Hanoi after his meeting with Vietnamese leader Nguyen Phu Trong.
Biden, who made his first visit to Vietnam, emphasized that he was not trying to start a “cold war” with China and pointed out that his aim was to ensure stability around the world by improving the US’s ties with Vietnam and other Asian countries. Stating that he did not make his trip to Vietnam to “surround” China, Biden emphasized that he “does not want to cut ties” with China.
Biden expressed that he is sincere about getting relations between the USA and China back on track. Biden stated that Chinese President Xi Jinping, who did not attend the G20 Summit in India, “is currently dealing with some difficulties” and pointed out that Xi is facing “economic difficulties”.
Biden noted that he met with Chinese Premier Li Jiang during the G20 and said, “We talked about stability. It was not a confrontational conversation at all.” used the phrases. On the other hand, it was noteworthy that White House Spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre ended the press conference before Biden could fully answer the question about his meeting with Prime Minister Li.
Old Enemies Become Friends
The USA and Vietnam fought a bloody war that lasted 20 years, between 1955 and 1975, during the Cold War years. More than 1 million Vietnamese soldiers and nearly 180 thousand civilians lost their lives in the war, and the USA lost 58 thousand soldiers. Vietnam, most of whose territory was bombed continuously by the USA throughout the war, was left in ruins, civilian infrastructure and natural environment were greatly damaged, and the effects of the chemical bombs used in the war could not be erased for many years.
White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said in a statement before Biden’s visit, “The United States and Vietnam have joined hands for decades to deal with the painful legacy of the Vietnam War and promote reconciliation.” he said. Recently, the USA has been taking steps to strengthen its existing alliances with new connections and establish new alliance partnerships in order to balance China’s increasing influence and military presence in the region.
AUKUS Agreement, which envisages the sharing of nuclear submarine technology between the USA, the UK and Australia; The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (QUAD) between the USA, India, Japan and Australia and the trilateral defense cooperation between the USA, Japan and South Korea, which was reinforced with the summit held in Camp David last month, are considered as initiatives in this direction. On the other hand, Washington is seeking to increase military cooperation at the bilateral level with Indonesia and Vietnam, apart from the Philippines and Thailand, with which it already has defense partnerships among the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries.