Richard Heydarian

Opinion | South China Sea: three barriers to a fully fledged Philippines-Vietnam alliance

Despite Marcos Jnr’s best efforts, Manila and Hanoi will have to first overcome mistrust, strategic and ideological differences, and their lack of military operational compatibility

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Richard Heydarian

Published: 3:30am, 6 Jun 2023Updated: 3:50am, 6 Jun 2023

President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr spoke of the Philippines’ “burgeoning” ties with Vietnam the first time he met Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, on the sidelines of the Asean summit in Cambodia last November.

Later that month, the Philippine president hosted Vietnam’s National Assembly chairman Vuong Dinh Hue in Malacanang Palace, where his special guest spoke of the need to “do more to enhance the relationships between our political parties and government-to-government and parliament-to-parliament relationships”.

Last month, Marcos Jnr met Pham again on the sidelines of the Asean summit in Indonesia to continue discussions, including on South China Sea disputes. Marcos underscored the need to “talk sincerely” and “find a way” to ensure the countries – both members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations – manage their disputes as part of broader efforts towards a full strategic partnership.

Soon after, the two nations held the 10th meeting of their high-level Joint Permanent Working Group on Maritime and Ocean Concerns in Vietnam, to better coordinate their South China Sea positions and explore cooperation, especially in maritime security.

By all indications, the two nations are bent on exploring a de facto alliance amid concerns over China’s expanding footprint in adjacent waters. But any substantive Philippines-Vietnam cooperation will have to contend with strategic and ideological misgivings, China’s economic primacy, and the ripple effects of intensified great power competition in the region.

Adversaries throughout the Cold War, with the Philippines hosting American bases crucial to US operations in Vietnam, Manila and Hanoi forged increasingly cordial ties throughout the 1990s. In particular, the Ramos administration supported communist Vietnam joining Asean, a bloc founded by mostly pro-Western regimes.