Comments on US relations with allies, China and Vietnam under Joe Biden

PV:Dear Major General, international public opinion shows that the 46th President of the United States, Mr. Joe Biden, is facing many difficulties. In your opinion, what program will Mr. Biden choose first to solve domestic problems?

Major General Le Van Cuong:In my opinion the most important and urgent problem at hand isJoe Bidenis to control the Covid-19 pandemic by all means. If Covid is not paid, the US economy will continue to decline, and the US will become more divided. Here is a personal issue of Mr. Joe that I want to mention, that is, in 1972 his first wife and young daughter died in a car accident, and in 2015 his eldest daughter died of cancer. In my opinion, the family tragedy factor will be the reason for him to expand the law to handle the country's disasters. Those are issues of health care, better ensuring social security, health insurance...

President-elect Joe Biden, his wife and family members, along with Vice President-elect Kamala Harris and her husband on stage to celebrate their victory on the evening of November 7 (morning of November 8, Vietnam time). Photo: AP

The second thing Mr. Biden will have to do isstrengthen solidarityof America. He once declared: Work together for America, work together to develop, division is death. He will also find a way to overcome the current political crisis and distrust of the American people.

PV:In general, can the Major General give an overview of Joe Biden's foreign policy, is it different from his predecessor Donald Trump?

Major General Le Van Cuong:I think that in terms of foreign affairs on a global scale, there are two fundamental differences between Mr. Biden and Mr. Trump. First, Mr. Biden will gradually restore the relationship between the United States and its allies and friends. First of all, the relationship between the United States and its European allies, with Japan, South Korea, Canada, Mexico, etc. Second, he will return to strengthen the WTO, the global institutions that Mr. Donald Trump withdrew from. Thus, the US will likely return to the path of multilateralism and globalization, contributing to strengthening the role and position of the US.

During his election campaign, Joe Biden pledged to renegotiate the TPP Agreement if he became US President.

PV:The public is most concerned about the US-China relationship under Mr. Biden. How can the Major General predict this relationship in the next 4 years?

Major General Le Van Cuong:The relationship between the US and China has the potential to impact the whole world.US-China trade warhas dominated the global economy; the tensions between the two countries on national security and politics have impacted and shaken the entire structure and situation of the world. In the current context, I believe that the relationship between the US and China under Joe Biden will have tactical adjustments. In principle, please note that Xi Jinping's policies from 2013 to present have challenged the role and position of the United States in the world.

Because the Democratic and Republican parties have a unified perception of China, the US-China relationship will never return to its former glory.

Major General Le Van Cuong

However, it was the policies of Chinese President Xi Jinping that made the Democratic and Republican parties have a unified perception of China. China's violations of international law and infringement on the interests of other countries awakened the American elite, and it was also the US that changed its policy towards China. In 2010 in Hanoi, then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared that the dispute in the East Sea was directly related to the national interests of the US. After that, the Obama administration shifted its relationship to the Asia-Pacific region.

Under Donald Trump, official state documents were passed, such as: the US National Security Strategy in 2017, the National Defense Strategy in January 2018; the Indo-Pacific Strategy in 2019... In all official US documents, China is identified as the main competitor. That is also the common perception of the Democratic and Republican parties, so the relationship between the US and China will never return to its golden age as before.

Mr. Joe Biden (right) and Mr. Xi Jinping during a meeting in Los Angeles in 2012. Photo: Getty Images

From now onthe relationship between these two powersIt is still a competition in terms of politics, economics, diplomacy, and even defense and security. But in my opinion, Mr. Biden will choose a different approach and policy operations than Mr. Donald Trump. He will not focus on the economy but will also implement much more synchronous policies.

PV:Mr. Biden was elected President of the United States, and Vietnamese public opinion is also very interested in the relationship between Vietnam and the United States in the coming time. What is your opinion, Major General?

Vietnam has great benefits in promoting and deepening relations with the US in the areas of economics, science and technology, human resource training, and diplomacy.

Major General Le Van Cuong

Major General Le Van Cuong:To assess the Vietnam-US relationship under President Joe Biden, we must scientifically start from the interests of the US and Vietnam. Our Vietnam has great interests in promoting and deepening the relationship with the US in the areas of economy, science and technology, human resource training, and diplomacy. Even in terms of national security and defense, we need to cooperate with the US. In return, the US also has great interests in promoting and deepening the relationship with Vietnam. The US needs Vietnam in solving US regional and global issues.

In this regard, Vietnam is a bright spot, a country that plays an important role in the US's regional and global strategic calculations. They also need Vietnam - a country of 100 million people that has overcome 19 wars of national liberation in 2,600 years. Vietnam has made the US fail in the war thanks to the bravery and strong vitality of the entire nation. Vietnam is constantly developing, rising, and increasingly having an important influence in the region and the world, so they need Vietnam very much.

Joe Biden, then US Vice President, shakes hands with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong during a luncheon at the US State Department in Washington, DC on July 7, 2015. Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs

When it comes toVietnam - US relationsUnder any president, we base our decisions on interests. And these interests of both countries will change little under Joe Biden. The diplomatic relationship between the two countries will also not change. In my opinion, in the next 4 years, the Vietnam - US relationship - the relationship established 25 years ago - will continue to be strengthened more deeply and comprehensively.

The only difference is that each president has a different policy. Mr. Donald Trump has a different policy towards Vietnam than Mr. Joe Biden. This is a tactical, situational change, not a fundamental change in the relationship. These changes often happen in international foreign relations when someone new takes office. I believe that under President Biden, the Vietnam-US relationship will continue to be maintained, strengthened and deepened.

PV:Thank you, Major General, for this interview!