Australia and Vietnam upgrade relations to highest level amid US-China rivalry
- The comprehensive strategic partnership will support expanded cooperation on a range of issues, including climate, energy, defence and security
- Vietnam’s ‘bamboo diplomacy’ saw it boost relations last year with the world’s top powers as it tries to navigate rising global tensions
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Thursday the country was elevating ties with Vietnam to a comprehensive strategic partnership, opening an annual dialogue on critical minerals amid a push to diversify supply chains away from China.
“Elevating our ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership today, places Australia and Vietnam among each other’s significant partners,” Albanese told a news conference in Canberra.
The ties upgrade marks the latest success for Communist-ruled Vietnam’s “bamboo diplomacy”, after it boosted relations last year with the world’s top powers as it tries to navigate rising global tensions.
“Mutual political trust between the two countries has been elevated, reaching the highest-ever level,” the official Vietnam News Agency reported on Thursday.
The partnership will support expanded cooperation on a range of issues, including climate, environment, energy, defence and security, and economic engagement and education, a joint statement by the two countries said.
Albanese and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on Thursday also witnessed the exchanges of 12 cooperation documents on areas including energy, minerals, agriculture, banking and finance, according to the Vietnamese government.
