Message after US aircraft carrier visit to Vietnam

The US Navy's aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, cruiser USS Lake Champlain and destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer with 6,000 sailors entered Vietnamese waters in Da Nang at noon on March 5.started a five-day friendly visit.considered the largest US military presence in Vietnam since the war ended in 1975.

Professor Carl Thayer, Australian Defense Force Academy, University of New South Wales, assessed that by sending an aircraft carrier to Vietnam, the US wants to affirm that it will maintain its naval presence in the East Sea. On the Vietnamese side, Hanoi has shown that it always welcomes the US Navy when this force contributes to ensuring peace and stability in the region.

"Vietnam was assured by the Trump administration that it would strengthen the Comprehensive Partnership. Hanoi responded by accepting the first aircraft carrier visit since the war," said Mr. Thayer.

After President Trump concluded his state visit to Vietnam last November, the White House issued a statementreaffirmed his commitment to strengthening the Vietnam-US Comprehensive Partnership. Mr. Trump at a joint press conference with Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang on November 12.The United States remains committed to a free and open Asia-Pacific, and expects countries in the region to respect each other's sovereignty, abide by the law, and promote responsible trade, he said.Regarding the East Sea issue, Vietnam and the US agree on the policy of resolving disputes through peaceful negotiations, by diplomatic and legal means, on the basis of respect for international law.

According to Professor Thayer, a long-time researcher on regional security, the Carl Vinson is the centerpiece of the navy's strike force, demonstrating America's enormous military power.

"The visit to Vietnam shows that the US plans to maintain its commitment in Southeast Asia.", Mr. Thayer said.

Note the time the Carl Vinson ship arrives in Vietnam,Mr. Murray Hiebert, Deputy Director of the Southeast Asia Research Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), USA, assessed that the "floating fortress" of the US Navy arrived in Da Nang not long after US Secretary of Defense James Mattis visited Hanoi in late January. That shows that the two countries are sending a strong message that the Vietnam - US relationship is improving at many levels, including the military field.

"The US wants to say that Vietnam is its important partner in Asia, while Hanoi considers Washington a key player in the East Sea," he said.Hiebert said.

Professor Thayer predicted that Vietnam-US defense cooperation is entering a new phase, and Vietnam may increase its purchases of US equipment after Washington lifted the ban on arms sales to Hanoi in 2016. During his visit to the US in May 2017, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc expressed his interest into purchase additional defense equipment from the United States, including ships for the Coast Guard.Vietnam is said to have spent $79 million to purchase US equipment.“That number is likely to increase this year,” Mr. Thayer said.

December 2017, Hamilton-class cruiserUSCGC Morgenthauthat the US handed over to Vietnam has docked at Vung Tau port. This shipnamed CSB-8020, belonging to the Vietnam Coast Guard. Earlier this year,Naval TodayreportThe US Coast Guard plans to decommission the patrol boat USCGC Sherman and possibly transfer it to Vietnam, according toExcess Defense Articles (EDA) program.

The Australian expert hopes that the Carl Vinson's visit will set a precedent for Vietnam to welcome other visits, which will take place annually. Mr. Thayer assessed.The US and China are still competing in the South China Sea, but both sides will be careful to avoid escalating tensions. The US will continue to send freedom of navigation patrols to the region and hold joint naval exercises with allies and partners. While the UK has announced it will conduct freedom of navigation patrols this year, Australia, another US ally, is under pressure to join Washington in joint patrols. China will monitor these patrols but will not prevent international warships from entering the South China Sea, Mr. Thayer predicted.

Dr. Le Hong Hiep, an expert at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), Singapore, commented that the visit to Vietnam by the US aircraft carrier shows that the two sides "feel more comfortable in large-scale defense cooperation activities".

"This is a natural result, but not easily achieved, from the continuous efforts of both sides to foster bilateral defense relations over the past 10 years," said Mr. Hiep.

ISEAS experts recommend that Vietnam and the US need to take advantage of the "momentum" from the aircraft carrier event to turn large-scale cooperation activities into a "new normal" state.These activities include regular visits by US warships, including aircraft carriers, joint exercises, equipment and weapons sales, and joint production of weapons and military equipment.The “normalization” and institutionalization of high-level defense cooperation activities will help the two sides deepen and make the Comprehensive Partnership more substantive, helping the two sides better cope with new security challenges arising from worrying changes in the current regional geostrategic context.

"Vietnam and the US should not worry that such activities will offend a third party, as long as they do not pose direct threats to that party," Hiep said.