Why in the News?
The Prime Minister of Vietnam undertook a State visit to India.
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Outcomes of the Visit include:
- Plan of Action (2024-2028): Plan of Action announced to implement the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
- Line of Credit: India extended a US$ 300 million credit line to enhance Vietnam’s maritime security.
- Cultural Cooperation: A Letter of Intent was signed to conserve and restore the "My Son" World Heritage Site temples.
- MoUs Signed: Agreements on cooperation in radio and television, and the development of the National Maritime Heritage Complex in Lothal, Gujarat.
- Other Announcements:
- Virtual inauguration of an Army Software Park in Nha Trang, Vietnam.
- Vietnam will join the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI).
India-Vietnam Relations
- Background: India supported Vietnam's independence from France, objected to the US involvement in Vietnam in the 1960s and was one of the first countries to recognise a united Vietnam in 1975 after the war with the US.
- Strategic Partnership: Bilateral relations between the two countries were elevated to a ‘Strategic Partnership’ in 2007 and a “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” in 2016.
- Their current cooperation is guided by the Joint Vision for Peace, Prosperity and People 2020.
- Economic Cooperation: Bilateral trade stood at US$ 14.82 billion in 2023-2024.
- Vietnam is India’s 23rd-largest global trade partner and 5th largest among ASEAN countries.
- Defence Cooperation: Defence cooperation is multi-faceted and includes defence dialogues, training, exercises (PASSEX, VINBAX, and MILAN), collaboration in capacity building and Navy and Coast Guard ship visits.
- In 2022, both countries signed a Joint Vision Statement on Defence Partnership towards 2030 and a Memorandum of Understanding on Mutual Logistics Support.
- Integration to supply chains: Partnership with Vietnam can help India participate in building reliable, efficient and resilient regional and global supply chains.
- Vietnam’s Free trade agreement with European Union has further enhanced its role in the global trade regime.
- Cultural: India and Vietnam share over 2,000 years of cultural and civilizational ties, with a strong connection through their shared Buddhist heritage.
Significance of Vietnam for India
- Geostrategic location: Vietnam’s position in the Indo-Pacific is crucial for maintaining secure and stable trade routes.
- Countering China: India opposes China’s claim in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh while Vietnam has differences over Chinese claims over the Paracel and the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea (SCS).
- Vietnam remains one of the most strident voices in Southeast Asia against China’s unilateral actions in the SCS.
- Energy security: Indian companies have invested in oil and gas exploration projects in the Vietnamese waters in the South China Sea which are extremely rich in hydrocarbon reserves.
- A consistent supply of hydrocarbons from Vietnam can help ensure energy security in India.
- Act East Policy: Vietnam is a core partner of India in ASEAN and a critical partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision.
- Support for India on international platforms: Vietnam strongly supports India's permanent membership in an expanded UN Security Council.
Challenges in India-Vietnam relations
- Balancing China: Vietnam, like other neighbors, is cautious of provoking of China, leading to reluctance in deepening military ties with India.
- Chinese claims over the South China Sea can threaten India’s prospects of exploring hydrocarbons in the region.
- Modest trade: Despite growth in trade with India, overall it remains modest compared to Vietnam's trade with China (around $100 billion); and the U.S. ($142 billion).
- Trade routing from China: Economic Survey 2023-24 noted that the rise in trade through countries such as Mexico and Vietnam are a result of Chinese firms re-routing their supply through these countries.
- Reluctance in Military Deals: Despite India's line of credit for military purchases, Vietnam has been hesitant to use it fully, and has resisted buying the Akash surface-to-air missile.
- Cultural gap: There is a significant cultural, custom and language gap between people from both countries.
Initiatives taken by India to strengthen relations with Vietnam
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Way ahead
- Enhancing economic cooperation: Promoting joint ventures, enhancing physical and digital connectivity, encouraging e-commerce, upgrading regional trading architecture and mutually providing greater market access etc.
- Bridging Connectivity Gap: The India-Myanmar-Thailand trilateral highway could link up with already existing roads like the one linking Thailand with the Vietnamese port of Da Nang.
- Deepening Cultural cooperation: People-to-people exchanges need to be further strengthened, as there is significant goodwill that the two states can leverage.
- Realising converging interests: India and Vietnam geographically lie at the centre of the Indo-Pacific region.
- Both countries would play a major role in this strategic space which is becoming a core theatre of competition for power and influence amongst the major powers.