U.S.-Vietnamese ties good for ASEAN
U.S.-Vietnamese ties good for ASEAN
JAKARTA (JP): The United States' decision to normalize
diplomatic relations with Vietnam bodes well for Indonesia and
other countries in Southeast Asia, officials and international
relations experts said yesterday.
The experts, Juwono Sudarsono and Dewi Fortuna Anwar, see the
restoration of ties, announced in Washington on Tuesday, as
helping to redress the imbalance of power that exists between
Southeast Asian nations on the one hand, and China on the other.
They said that the normalization would bolster the strength of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the
strategic equation against China, which is increasingly perceived
as a threat to the region.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas also welcomed the news,
although he expressed it more in diplomatic terms.
"This is a very welcome development," Alatas told a group of
foreign correspondents based in Jakarta yesterday.
"Indonesia has always stated its view in the past that
normalization of relations between the United States and Vietnam
would contribute positively to developments in this part of the
world," Alatas was reported by Reuters as saying.
Vietnam is scheduled to formally join Brunei, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand as the seventh
member of ASEAN later this month.
Dewi told The Jakarta Post that the resumption of relations
between Washington and Hanoi would inevitably have a strategic
effect on the region and, in particular, on relations with China.
"It certainly would account for a new important strategic
balance," said the National Institute of Science's international
relations expert.
Juwono, vice governor of the National Resilience Institute,
concurred on the implications of Washington's moves as fortifying
ASEAN's position with China.
The move would help to "not contain, but off-set" China's
growing military threat, Juwono said.
Juwono however stressed that China has a rightful role to play
in the region, describing its status as a "non-status quo" power.
Apart from Vietnam, three ASEAN states are entangled in a
potentially explosive territorial dispute with China over the
Spratly Islands in the South China Sea.
The issue heated up earlier this year when Manila and Beijing
flexed their military muscles over one of the disputed islands
causing a near stand-off.
Vietnam has a rather antagonistic history with China, with
several cross-border armed conflicts in the late 1970s.
The normalization of relations has enabled Vietnam to gain the
upper-hand with China by effectively creating a security
umbrella.
As Dewi pointed out: "It would not be that easy to push
Vietnam around anymore. It will not be that easy to `teach
Vietnam a lesson'" referring to the phrase Beijing often used in
justifying the border attacks against Vietnam.
Political weight
As a consequence, the ASEAN countries will increase their own
political weight by having an equally political powerful ally
vis-a vis China, Dewi said.
"ASEAN is of course very happy that Vietnam is a member of
ASEAN. In the whole of southeast Asia, Vietnam is the only
country that has successfully shown that it is able to bloody
China's nose," Dewi said, referring to the Chinese invasion in
which the weaker Vietnamese forces were able to inflict severe
casualties on China.
"It will certainly strengthen ASEAN in that respect. Not
necessarily more confrontational with China, but at least show
our deterrence capability," she added.
When asked whether Vietnam's entry into ASEAN had any bearing
on Washington's decision to normalize ties, Dewi expressed her
belief that it might have helped smoothen the process.
"I think the fact that Vietnam is becoming a member of ASEAN also
tilts the balance. It makes it that much easier for the United
States to normalize relations with Vietnam," she explained.
Politically it also seems more desirable for Hanoi, as a
member of ASEAN, to have ties with a superpower whom all the
other ASEAN states maintain amiable relations with.
"It would be extremely difficult if Vietnam does not have
relations with the United States. How would Vietnam manage during
the dialog relationship if it doesn't have representation in
Washington?" Dewi said referring to the various dialog forums
ASEAN has established with Washington, including the new ASEAN
Regional Forum.
The forum conducts regional security discussion between ASEAN
members and its dialog partners which includes both China and the
United States.
The coming forum in August is expected to be the first test on
the impact of the normalization of ties between Hanoi and
Washington. (mds)