Richard Javad Heydarian is a Manila-based academic, columnist and author
May 03, 2023
“[We should pursue] long-term stability, future orientation, good-neighbourly friendship and comprehensive co-operation", declared Chinese leader Xi Jinping during his meeting with visiting Vietnamese dignitary Truong Thi Mai in Beijing in late April. China and Vietnam, Mr Xi added, should remain "good neighbours, good friends, good comrades and good partners” in a new brave world.
Truong Thi Mai was no ordinary guest. She is Vietnam’s first woman to become a permanent member of the all-powerful Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) in almost half a century. What’s even more poignant, however, was the timing of her visit to Beijing.
It came barely a week after the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Hanoi to mark the 10th anniversary of the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries as part of broader efforts to seal a de facto alliance with Vietnam. Back in 2021, Vietnam also made a similar manoeuvre, when Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh held a high-profile meeting with a special Chinese envoy, Xiong Bo, barely a day before hosting the US Vice President Kamala Harris in Hanoi. The message was unmistakable.
Time and again, the Southeast Asian nation has signalled its unwillingness to side with either of the two superpowers in the Indo-Pacific. To enhance its room for manoeuvre, Vietnam has actively pursued strategic co-operation with “middle powers” from Japan and South Korea to India, Russia and Europe in recent years. The upshot is the emergence of Vietnam as a global economic dynamo and a full-fledged regional power in Southeast Asia. Vietnam’s successful “multi-alignment” strategy holds valuable lessons for nations around the world, including in the Middle East, where regional powers are deftly navigating relations with multiple superpowers.
Chinese communism has deep roots in Vietnam, despite the two countries' complicated relations. AFP
The Southeast Asian nation has signalled its unwillingness to side with either of the two superpowers in the Indo-Pacific
The emergence of contemporary Vietnam, built on the ruins of multiple ancient kingdoms, has few parallels anywhere in the world. From its millennia-old struggle with imperial China, to its defeat of Mongol forces in the Middle Ages, a relentless struggle for autonomy has defined Vietnam’s strategic history. If anything, the 20th century proved even more traumatic, as the Southeast Asian nation had to fend off not one, but multiple empires, beginning with colonial France and, shortly after, the Americans.
Just as important to understanding Vietnam’s national psyche, however, is its rollercoaster relations with neighbouring China. Chinese revolutionary communist leader Mao Zedong not only dispatched his finest generals, but also personally oversaw China’s assistance to Vietnamese communist forces’ successful campaigns against colonial France. By 1951, the Vietnamese communists adopted Maoism as a pillar of “the basic theory” of their party.
It didn’t take long, however, before bilateral relations soured, especially as Beijing began to explore a detente with the West in order to confront the Soviet Union, a key patron of Vietnam at the time. The upshot was the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese war, as both Hanoi and Beijing backed competing forces in the broader Indo-China conflict in the twilight decades of the 20th century.
Just as relevant is also Hanoi’s fear of abandonment, which reached its apogee in the late-1970s and throughout the 1980s, when an increasingly enfeebled Soviet Union, then fully embroiled in the Afghan War, struggled to aid its Vietnamese allies. Embittered by such traumatic history, post-Cold War Vietnam embraced a self-consciously “non-aligned” foreign policy posture.
Under the so-called “Four No’s” doctrine, Hanoi shunned, first, siding with any superpower against the other; second, hosting any foreign troops; third, negotiating a mutual defence pact with any foreign power; and fourth, deploying force to achieve foreign policy goals. Meanwhile, Vietnam adopted post-war reforms to rebuild the country through expanded trade and investment with the world.
Over the past two decades, Vietnam has carefully sought to leverage relations with multiple powers to maintain its autonomy. Two of its modern challenges include growing trade dependence on China and festering maritime disputes in the South China Sea.
In response, Vietnam reached out to its former nemesis, the US. First came Hanoi’s decision to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) in late 2000s to diversify its trading partnerships. Then came the signing of a comprehensive strategic co-operation agreement with the Obama administration, followed by the Trump administration’s designation of Vietnam as a “co-operative maritime partner” in the Indo-Pacific.
Economically, Vietnam’s gambit paid off big time. Bilateral trade ballooned to $139 billion last year, making America the largest export destination for Vietnamese manufacturers. In 2022, Vietnam surpassed even the United Kingdom to become one of the US’s top seven trading partners in merchandise. Bilateral defence ties, however, have been hobbled by ideological differences, most notably disagreements with the Biden administration and the US Congress over human rights and democracy issues. The two sides are yet to secure a single major defence deal a decade after signing a comprehensive partnership pact.
Crucially, Vietnam’s communist leadership has also refused to overtly align with the US. If anything, Vietnam’s party chief, Nguyen Phu Trong, was the first foreign leader to visit Mr Xi following the latter’s successful bid for a third term in office. The high-profile visit culminated in 13 major agreements, which aim to enhance bilateral trade and more effectively manage maritime disputes.
Moreover, Vietnam has also refused to side with the West against Russia. By adopting a consciously neutral position on the conflict in Ukraine, it has sought to maintain robust defence ties with Moscow, though western sanctions have complicated this.
Thanks to its “multi-alignment” strategy, Vietnam also enjoys deep strategic and economic ties with a whole host of middle powers, including India (a potential source anti-ship cruise missiles as well as warships), Japan (a major source of maritime security aid), as well as the EU (which has a defence partnership pact with the Hanoi).
The lesson for mid-sized nations and regional powers in other parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, is unmistakable. Vietnam has proven the wisdom of seeking and preserving fruitful ties with multiple superpowers simultaneously. By all indications, Middle Eastern powers seem to be following a similar path, as they deftly cultivate and balance relations with the US, China, India and Russia in an increasingly uncertain geopolitical environment. In many ways, multi-alignment seems to be the name of the game.
Duminy's Test career in numbers
Tests 46; Runs 2,103; Best 166; Average 32.85; 100s 6; 50s 8; Wickets 42; Best 4-47
White hydrogen: Naturally occurring hydrogen Chromite: Hard, metallic mineral containing iron oxide and chromium oxide Ultramafic rocks: Dark-coloured rocks rich in magnesium or iron with very low silica content Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land Olivine: A commonly occurring magnesium iron silicate mineral that derives its name for its olive-green yellow-green colour
Starring: George MacKay, Jannis Niewohner, Jeremy Irons
Rating: 3/5
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
Race card
1.45pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,200m.
2.15pm: Maiden Dh75,000 1,200m.
2.45pm: Handicap Dh95,000 1,200m.
3.15pm: Handicap Dh120,000 1,400m.
3.45pm: Handicap Dh80,000 1,400m.
4.15pm: Handicap Dh90,000 1,800m.
4.45pm: Handicap Dh80,000 1,950m.
The National selections:
1.45pm: Galaxy Road – So Hi Speed
2.15pm: Majestic Thunder – Daltrey
2.45pm: Call To War – Taamol
3.15pm: Eqtiraan - Bochart
3.45pm: Kidd Malibu – Initial
4.15pm: Arroway – Arch Gold
4.35pm: Compliance - Muqaatil
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister. "We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know. “All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.” It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins. Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement. The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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The Baha'i faith was made known in Yemen in the 19th century, first introduced by an Iranian man named Ali Muhammad Al Shirazi, considered the Herald of the Baha'i faith in 1844.
The Baha'i faith has had a growing number of followers in recent years despite persecution in Yemen and Iran.
Today, some 2,000 Baha'is reside in Yemen, according to Insaf.
"The 24 defendants represented by the House of Justice, which has intelligence outfits from the uS and the UK working to carry out an espionage scheme in Yemen under the guise of religion.. aimed to impant and found the Bahai sect on Yemeni soil by bringing foreign Bahais from abroad and homing them in Yemen," the charge sheet said.
Baha'Ullah, the founder of the Bahai faith, was exiled by the Ottoman Empire in 1868 from Iran to what is now Israel. Now, the Bahai faith's highest governing body, known as the Universal House of Justice, is based in the Israeli city of Haifa, which the Bahais turn towards during prayer.
The Houthis cite this as collective "evidence" of Bahai "links" to Israel - which the Houthis consider their enemy.
