Vietnam’s Evolving Role in US Asia Strategy | The Diplomat

During the Vietnam War, Vietnam was targeted by the United States as a key to stop the "domino effect" of communism in Southeast Asia. Vietnam went through a deadly and destructive war with the Americans to achieve unification of the country. The country became well-known worldwide for being able to resist the advanced, high-tech power of the United States, and thereby completely shook Washington's foreign policy with the so-called Vietnam syndrome.

 

However, in the 21st century, the position has changed dramatically. After the increasing aggression of Chinese claims in the South China Sea, the U.S. made a decisive decision to partially lift the arms embargo which had been imposed on Vietnam since 1984. Furthermore, Vietnam is also included in Washington's new Southeast Asia Maritime Security Initiative,  which aims to upgrade the ability of eight ASEAN countries to manage maritime challenges in the South China Sea.

 

Most remarkably, Vietnam is included in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the U.S. answer to the Chinese initiative of "One Belt, One Road." TPP is considered by some as an obvious attempt by the United States to contain China, due to the agreement's deliberate omission of China despite its important role in trans-Pacific trade. The absence of Philippines in the list of TPP partners is also noticeable. While the Philippines is Washington's close ally in ASEAN, with a defense treaty obligating the U.S. to protect the Philippines in case of attack, Manila is not included in TPP – but Hanoi is. This very fact shows that Vietnam is becoming more essential in the U.S. containment strategy for China.

http://thediplomat.com/2016/06/vietnams-evolving-role-in-us-asia-strategy/