By Helen Clark
With little fanfare on summits or human rights, the two countries are strengthening their ties.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott this week met his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung in Canberra. It was the second visit by the Vietnamese leader, but the first time since he and Abbott have met.
The meeting produced a new “Enhanced Comprehensive Partnership,” which follows on from 2009’s “Comprehensive Partnership.” The new agreement encompasses many areas, from defense and trade to human rights (albeit tangentially), as well as collaborations from scientific through to transnational crime and education and working holidays. Trade is important and Vietnam is Australia’s fastest growing trade partner within ASEAN; two-way trade was at A$7.3 billion ($5.5 billion) from 2013-2014. The Trans Pacific Partnership is also a part of the new agreement.
However, the main goal of the meeting seemed to be security. Defense ties have been increased, through commitments to peace, regional stability, and working through regional organizations such as ASEAN and APEC. South China Sea tensions are an obvious focus. Both nations “agree on the urgent need to conclude a code of conduct for the South China Sea”; restraint should be exercised and the importance of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea noted. Vietnam forged a strategic partnership with the Philippines earlier this month. Abbott and Dung say Australia and Vietnam enjoy a more mature bilateral relationship. Vietnam has been busy forging many relationships in recent years and strengthening its position through appointments such as a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Varied ties, with the U.S. and Russia as well as with middle powers like Australia, have characterized the once-isolationist communist nation this century as much as its rapid economic growth has.
Read the full story at The Diplomat