Vietnam pushes for stronger India-Asean ties

New Delhi: With Prime Minister Narendra Modi all set to visit the Philippines soon to strengthen India’s engagement with Asean (Association of South-east Asian nations) as well as to attend the East Asia Summit, Vietnamese ambassador to India Ton Sinh Thanh on Tuesday evening pitched for more Indo-Asean engagement, hailing India as Vietnam’s “brother”.

Speaking at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in the national capital, the envoy also confirmed that the Vietnamese Prime Minister will represent his country at the “Special Asean-India Summit” and Republic Day celebrations in January at which India is expected to host leaders from all 10 ASEAN nations in honour of the completion of 25 years of Indo-ASEAN engagement and partnership. Vietnam, like India, has fought a border war with China earlier and remains wary of the Chinese dragon’s moves in the South China Sea (SCS) since it has a maritime territorial dispute with China in the region. Vietnam is also an important member of Asean and is gearing up to receive US President Donald Trump in Hanoi.

Asked about the situation in his country’s vicinity especially in the context of Vietnam’s territorial dispute with China, Mr Thanh said, “There are problems in the South China Sea ... it is quite complicated. We have to defend (our) Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and our islands.” Acknowledging the powerful Chinese presence in the region, he said, “China is a big neighbour ... We have the same problem as India.” But he quickly added, “There is no other way other than having dialogue. We should not move towards situations of conflict.”

He pointed out that ASEAN is in talks with China on the way forward to resolve disputes in the SCS.

Describing his country’s deep relationship with India, the Vietnamese envoy said, “We are like two brothers more than friends ... Our relationship is now better than ever, free from any problem. It is as clear as a sky without clouds.” The envoy also said he was “happy” that the Sino-Indian military face-off at Doklam (in Bhutanese territory) had “ended peacefully without any serious conflict”.

However, Mr. Thanh was circumspect and cautious in his reaction to a proposed Japanese move to establish a quadrilateral with India, the US and Australia on issues in the Asia-Pacific region, indicating that there was nothing wrong “if it is not aimed at any country”. But he was clear that “Vietnam will not join any bloc as it is not good for Vietnam”. The envoy also welcomed the ongoing Indian participation in oil and gas exploration in Vietnamese waters. He also mentioned the high-level exchanges with India.

On his country’s ties with the US with which it fought a bitter war that ended in the defeat of the Americans in 1975,  he said Vietnam has a “good relationship” with the US which is “getting better”.

With India gearing up to receive 10 ASEAN Heads of State/Government for next year’s Republic Day parade, New Delhi is currently in the thick of efforts to coordinate the visit of the top dignitaries from the 10 ASEAN nations. ASEAN comprises 10 nations—-Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. The Indian Government had recently stated, “The relationship with ASEAN is a key  pillar of our foreign policy and the foundation of our Act East Policy. The up-gradation of the relationship into a Strategic Partnership in 2012 was a natural progression to the ground covered since India became a Sectoral Partner of the ASEAN in 1992, Dialogue Partner in 1996 and Summit Level Partner in 2002. There are, in total, 30 Dialogue Mechanisms between India and ASEAN, cutting across various sectors.”

“India and ASEAN are observing 25 years of their Dialogue Partnership, 15 years of Summit Level interaction and 5 years of Strategic Partnership throughout 2017 by undertaking a wide range of activities, both in India and through our Missions in ASEAN Member States ... The Look East Policy has today matured into a dynamic and action oriented ‘Act East Policy’,” New Delhi had asserted recently.