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Vietnam's foreign policy reorientation

Posted on:2012-11-14Degree:Ph.DType:Dissertation
University:Boston UniversityCandidate:Lee, Beck HingFull Text:PDF
GTID:1466390011962998Subject:History
Abstract/Summary:
Vietnam in the 20th century faced many wars and military struggles. The ruling communist regime, which unified Vietnam under the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), had a reputation for stubborn militancy and its threat to regional peace. By the 1980s, it had been internationally isolated because of its occupation of Cambodia. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, Vietnam went through a turning point in its foreign policy stance when it unconditionally pulled out all its troops from Cambodia, normalized relations with China, developed relations with the US and joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). It also proclaimed its desire to befriend all countries.;Vietnam's change from its past belligerent behavior to integration with the international community in the spirit of friendliness and cooperation is clearly quite remarkable. In this dissertation, I explore Vietnam's initial motivation to change, the influences that determined its path of change, and the processes through which it was realized. Extreme socioeconomic hardship and international isolation forced Vietnam to make profound adjustments in its foreign policy in the struggle to survive. However, I argue that diplomatic interaction with ASEAN also influenced Vietnam's foreign policy thinking and encouraged Vietnam to adhere to a change that was more constructive and strikingly different from the paths of such other communist countries as North Korea and Cuba.;My argument is supported by data derived from news reports, statements, and documents as well as by the descriptive literature in published books and articles. I find that powerful forces in the international system, evolving relations with the major powers and the domestic crisis at home were the main drivers of Vietnam's change. However, intense engagement in ASEAN activities also helped alter Vietnam's approach to foreign relations, and the formation of its new international identity. ASEAN played a subtle but important role in making Vietnam's foreign policy reorientation come to fruition. Vietnam's regional integration with ASEAN and Southeast Asia in turn, put it on a firmer course toward integration with the world.
Keywords/Search Tags:Foreign policy, ASEAN
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