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Amber Wang

Chinese and Vietnamese personnel will carry out a joint naval patrol and training exercise in the Gulf of Tonkin this week, extending a practice that has continued despite long-standing competing maritime claims.
The joint manoeuvres will take place as part of the China-Vietnam Border Defence Friendship Exchange, which will include medical and cultural exchange events, China’s defence ministry said on Sunday.
They will be conducted in waters off China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region and Vietnam’s Quang Ninh province, as well as the Gulf of Tonkin, known in China as the Beibu Gulf, the ministry said.
The activities – which Vietnamese reports say will take place on Wednesday and Thursday – are designed to “strengthen bilateral military friendship, deepen cooperation, improve the joint ability to safeguard border and maritime security”, according to the ministry.
The gulf is located off the coasts of northern Vietnam and South China, and has been a regular site for patrols between the two countries, most recently in November. Additionally, China and Vietnam’s coastguards also conducted joint patrols in the gulf last year.


The joint patrols reflect continued efforts by Beijing and Hanoi to strengthen security cooperation, despite their ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
Vietnam is trying to balance its relations with both Beijing and Washington as strategic competition in Southeast Asia rises.
While China remains Vietnam’s biggest trade partner, the United States is Vietnam’s biggest export market.
Vietnam’s exports to the US have risen steadily as higher tariffs on Chinese goods have discouraged Beijing’s exports.
In January, Vietnam recorded the biggest trade surplus with the United States, surpassing both Mexico and China, Reuters reported on Friday.
However, Vietnam regards the US as a “belligerent” power and its military is preparing for a possible American “war of aggression”, according to an Associated Press report last month.
At the same time, satellite images suggest that China has stepped up reclamation on a shoal in the disputed Paracel Islands, South China Sea features known in China as the Xisha Islands, and in Vietnam as the Hoang Sa Islands.
The Paracels are claimed by both countries but have been controlled by China since 1974.
Alongside the friendship event, the two countries will hold their first high-level ministerial talks in Vietnam under a new platform for diplomacy, defence, and public security next week.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong and Defence Minister Dong Jun will meet their Vietnamese counterparts for talks.
In a phone call between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Vietnam leader To Lam in January, Xi stressed that China and Vietnam should cooperate to promote development, “jointly defend the cause of socialism”, and oppose hegemonism and bloc confrontation.
Relations between Vietnam and the United States have also advanced, with cooperation expanding across a wide range of areas, including trade and investment. This cooperation deepened following the upgrade of their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2023.


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The Gulf of Tonkin will be the backdrop this week for naval activities despite a five-decade maritime dispute


The Gulf of Tonkin will be the backdrop this week for naval activities despite a five-decade maritime dispute.


In joint patrols with China, Vietnam steers course between 2 powers

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}The Gulf of Tonkin will be the backdrop this week for naval activities despite a five-decade maritime dispute

The Gulf of Tonkin will be the backdrop this week for naval activities despite a five-decade maritime dispute