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Chinese daily says Obama is unable to turn Hanoi into ally

Chinese daily says Obama is unable to turn Hanoi into ally

Posted May. 24, 2016 07:41,   

Updated May. 24, 2016 07:47

한국어

The Chinese daily Global Times revealed Monday China’s discomfort about U.S. President Barack Obama’s visit to Vietnam, carrying an editorial claiming that Vietnam would not become another U.S. ally like the Philippines. China began joint navy drills with Thailand on May 21, the same day the U.S. president left his country for the scheduled state visit to Vietnam, and conducted a shooting exercise in the South China Sea.

The Global Times deval‎ued the meaning of the state visit, saying, “The tour is overdue. Last year marked the 40th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, as well as the 20th anniversary of the normalization of U.S.-Vietnam diplomatic relations, but Obama has not visited the nation until now. It means that Hanoi is not the most important partner for Washington.”

The Chinese daily said that Vietnam wants to gain more leverage from the U.S. to contain China in the South China Sea while the U.S. is seeking to use Vietnam’s military bases, arguing that Vietnam can never be an ally to the U.S. like the Philippines because the country has been worrying about its gains and losses in its ties with the U.S. and overly concerned about maximizing its interests.

The article also added that while China and Vietnam are in conflict over the territorial disputes in the South China Sea, the two are the countries with the same socialist system, and that China is the biggest supporter of stabilization of the Vietnamese regime.

On May 21, China conducted a joint military exercise code-named Blue Strike 2016 with Thailand. Running until June 9, the exercise will involve some 1,000 navy soldiers and marines from both countries, taking place both in land and in the waters.

The official website of the Chinese military reported on Monday that the South Sea Fleet conducted shooting exercises in the West Pacific Ocean on May 21. Pundits say that the joint military exercise, which will be conducted in accordance with the itinerary of Obama’s to visit Vietnam and Japan, is a response to the besieging strategy of the U.S. towards Asia.



베이징=구자룡특파원 bonhong@donga.com