Journal of International Studies

A high-level bilateral visit in New Delhi this week demonstrates the myriad areas of cooperation between the two.

China and Vietnam gained seats Tuesday as Asia's representatives on the UN's top human rights body despite criticism of their rights records.  They joined other alleged rights violators Russia, Saudi Arabia, Algeria and Cuba as well as eight other nations in winning the 14 seats up for grabs on the 47-member UN Human Rights Council for a three-year period beginning January 1, according to a UN statement.  The Geneva-based Council is an inter-governmental body within the UN system responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe and for addressing situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them.  "Today the UN General Assembly elected egregious human rights abusers China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Cuba, and Vietnam to the UN Human Rights Council, dealing a severe blow to the credibility and efficacy of a body that was supposed to improve on its discredited predecessor," Geneva-ba...

A new arts complex in Hanoi reveals a generational shift. Vietnam’s China Backlash? Vietnam Facing Economic Crisis? Vietnam’s Blogger Revolution? The Limits to US-Vietnam Ties Why U.S. Should Embrace Vietnam When artists wanted to paint in 1980s Vietnam, they had to submit a sketch to the authorities. If it was approved, they got three tubes of paint: two red, one blue. By the time Nguyen Qui Duc returned to Hanoi in 1989 from more than a decade in the U.S., those times seemed to be over. The Vietnamese government had recently introduced the Doi Moi (“Renovation”) policy and the strict state-controlled economy was slowly loosening up. “There was an openness,” the cultural entrepreneur tells me. “Writers were able to write about the war and the circumstances of society. People were talking about the bonds that tie artists together.” Still, despite these major social shifts, the arts scene remained nascent and underground. Even with the introduction of the Internet i...

Vietnam is once more the scene of superpower confrontation, as deep rifts continue to churn the waters of the South China Sea. However, Vietnam can now deal with ambitious global powers from a position of independence and relative geopolitical strength.  The escalating rivalry between China and United States offers both risks and rewards to the leaders in Hanoi, as the world's two most powerful countries seek deeper strategic and economic influence in Southeast Asia.  Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's high-profile visit last week to Hanoi highlights Vietnam's importance to China's regional ambitions. The visit was aimed at improving China's often-turbulent relationship with neighboring Vietnam.  Li returned to Beijing with an impressive set of economic and political agreements, including an arrangement to begin joint exploration of natural resources in the Gulf of Tonkin, where the two countries dispute their maritime border. The cooperation coul...

Both countries see the disputed areas as vital interests, yet have taken divergent approaches in pressing their claims. Why Philippines Stands Up to China Law Not War in the South China Sea Urban Poor’s ‘Everyday Struggle’ in Vietnam The Philippines’ Search for Strategic Partners The Limits to US-Vietnam Ties Among the claimants and littoral states of the South China Sea (SCS), the Philippines and Vietnam have been the most vocal in expressing their alarm and concern over growing  Chinese assertiveness  in this strategic and resource-rich regional commons. Because of their power asymmetry vis-à-vis China, which has the most extensive claims to the SCS, Manila and Hanoi have been supporters of the U.S. pivot to Asia, to balance against Beijing’s growing maritime power projection, while also using diplomatic outreach to cultivate as many supporters as possible. The Philippines has been bolstering its defense and maritime law enforcement with the help of the U.S....