His two-day state visit will cast a spotlight on Russia’s influence in Southeast Asia, where Hanoi remains one of Moscow’s few friends.
In a statement sent to CNA, a spokesperson for the US Embassy in Hanoi said that no country “should give Putin a platform to promote his war of aggression and otherwise allow him to normalise his atrocities”. The US had entered Vietnam in the late 1950s to prevent a communist takeover of the region. As Vietnamese civilians became increasingly caught in the crossfire and American tactics grew more brutal, the war became deeply unpopular in the US.
“The draft resolutions are sponsored by the West to condemn Russia. I think abstention means not joining efforts to oppose Russia. That's support for Russia,” said Nguyen.POTENTIAL MAJOR DEFENCE AGREEMENTS Russia was also the largest supplier of arms to Southeast Asia for two decades, before the value of Russian defence sales dropped due to greater competition from other countries and the threat of US sanctions, according to a 2021 analysis by Storey, the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute expert on defence and security issues in Southeast Asia.
Storey said that it is worth looking out for whether any major agreements will be signed on defence cooperation, especially on the sale of firearms.