Monday, October 24, 2016

Vietnam: Chinese Warships Visit Cam Ranh Bay

Background Briefing:
Vietnam: Chinese Warships Visit
Cam Ranh Bay
Carlyle A. Thayer
October 20, 2016
[client name deleted]
Vietnam state media cited the foreign affairs department of Khanh Hoa province as
saying today that three Chinese warships will dock at Cam Ranh Bay this weekend for
a four-day visit. This will be the first time Chinese navy will visit the naval base.
Just wonder if you have any words on this. Does its shows that bilateral ties are
improving?
ANSWER: The first visit of three PLAN warships to Cam Ranh International Port is an
illustration of Vietnam’s policy of “diversification and multilateralization” of its
external relations. The port was opened earlier this year and has been visited by
warships from Singapore, Japan, India, France and the United States. This port is
separate from the military port at Cam Ranh Bay where Vietnam berths its warships
and Kilo-class submarines and where the Russian navy has special access. The visit of
PLAN warships illustrates an improvement in relations following the HD 981 crisis in
2014. Vietnam and China began coordinated Coast Guard patrols in the Gulf of Tonkin
in April 2006 that in recent years have witnessed reciprocal friendly port visits. The
tenth joint patrol was conducted in September 2015.
It should be noted, however, that this is not the first time Chinese warships have
visited Vietnam. In November 2001 a PLAN Jiangwei II guided missile frigate visited
the port of Saigon and in November 2008 the PLAN training ship Zheng He also visited
Ho Chi Minh City. Chinese warships have also visited other ports. In December 2009
the PLAN ships Cheng Hai and Chao Yang visited Haiphong and in November 2010 a
PLAN frigate visited Da Nang.
The most recent visit by Chinese warships to Cam Ranh Bay follows an invitation by
Vietnam in March of this year. After 2014 both sides moved to restore “political
trust” through friendly military exchanges on their common border. These exchanges
now involve meetings between their respective defense ministers. The PLAN visit to
Cam Ranh International Port extends these confidence-building measures to the
maritime domain.
Thayer Consultancy
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Suggested citation: Carlyle A. Thayer, “Vietnam: Chinese Warships Visit Cam Ranh
Bay,” Thayer Consultancy Background Brief, October 20, 2016. All background briefs
are posted on Scribd.com (search for Thayer). To remove yourself from the mailing list
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Thayer Consultancy provides political analysis of current regional security issues and
other research support to selected clients. Thayer Consultancy was officially
registered as a small business in Australia in 2002.

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