US ship Carl Vinson arrives in Da Nang

Vietnam's balanced policy

The Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group docked at Da Nang port on March 5, marking the largest US military presence in Vietnam since the end of the war in 1975. Commenting on the appearance of the US warship group in the region, experts said that the US wanted to target China in the context of disputes and tensions over sovereignty in the East Sea.

Retired US Navy Rear Admiral John Kirby said that the USS Carl Vinson's arrival in Vietnam carries a clear message.

“It’s a message to Vietnam about how much the United States cares about the relationship between the two countries. It’s a message to China and, more broadly, it’s a message to the entire Pacific region that the United States is here militarily and will always be here,” said John Kirby.

CNN cited military and diplomatic analysis that also gave the same view.However, there are expert opinions in China that evaluate Vietnam's balanced policy.

For many months up to this point, through diplomatic and military channels, Vietnam has been assuring its large neighbor China about Carl Vinson's March 5 visit. The British news agency Reuters wrote that Vietnamese leaders have clearly expressed an independent foreign policy and a desire to have extensive diplomatic relations, while maintaining stable relations with China, as well as peacefully resolving disputes in the East Sea.

Some Chinese commentators have used the Carl Vinson's presence as an excuse to demand that China also increase its military presence, but the Chinese government's response has been rather "quiet".

Reuters also quoted a statement in January by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying saying that China does not object to the visit of a US aircraft carrier to Da Nang, as long as such cooperation is beneficial to regional peace and stability.

Meanwhile, mainland security expert Zhang Baohui at Lingnan University in Hong Kong (China) said that Beijing is not afraid of the US aircraft carrier's visit to Vietnam partly because of Vietnam's successful foreign policy.

“Beijing understands better Vietnam's current balancing policy,” said Mr. Zhang Baohiu.

The US side has so far publicly affirmed that the visit of the USS Carl Vinson, with a crew of about 5,000 sailors and pilots, is a historic visit and a historic opportunity to promote the building of friendly relations with Vietnam.

America's Asia Pivot Policy

The aircraft carrier Carl Vinson is scheduled to anchor about 2 nautical miles from Da Nang port. This is a historic, five-day visit by the US warship group to Vietnam.

The visit is also scheduled to include cultural, culinary and sporting exchanges between the US and Vietnamese navies. US soldiers are expected to visit a centre for the care of victims of Agent Orange, a chemical used by the US during the Vietnam War.

Carl Vinson’s visit is a powerful symbol of the growing strategic relationship between two countries that once faced each other on opposite sides of the battlefield. US-Vietnam military ties have been building since 2016, when the administration of former President Barack Obama announced the lifting of a decades-long arms embargo.

Five years ago, the US began to publicly announce its pivot to Asia. The “Pivot” strategy is an effort to elevate Asia’s position in US foreign policy. The strategy is primarily to strengthen US relations with Asia, not to contain China. But the strategy is also to remind China that the US is not retreating from Asia.

Under President Donald Trump, the US announced the end of its rebalancing policy in Asia, a move that could be aimed at erasing the legacy of the “Pivot” of its predecessor Obama. However, the Donald Trump administration still maintains a level of interest in this region.

Last November, President Trump visited Da Nang to attend the APEC 2017 Summit and then went to Hanoi for an official visit to Vietnam. Shortly after, US Secretary of Defense James Mattis visited Vietnam in January 2018, laying the groundwork for Carl Vinson’s historic visit.

It can be seen that the US is still maintaining strong relations with Vietnam.

In Southeast Asia, the US has had a military presence in the region for a long time. Part of the reason the US has given is to ensure the shipping route through the East Sea, with a trade value of 5,000 billion USD each year.

What is certain is that neither current US President Donald Trump nor his predecessor Obama want to give up the military presence to ensure this “freedom of navigation”.