The US is reportedly in talks with Vietnam on offering the country F-16 fighter jets after the two countries upgraded their diplomatic ties earlier this month, but experts said on Sunday that the potential deal, serving the US’ hegemonic goals of containing China, would stir up troubles that sabotage peace and stability in the region, and that Vietnam will not easily accept that.
In a move that “could irk China and sideline Russia,” the Biden administration is in talks with Vietnam over an arms sale package featuring a fleet of F-16 fighter jets that could come together within the next year, Reuters reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the deal.
The deal, which could become the largest arms transfer in history between the two countries, is still in its early stages, with exact terms yet to be worked out, and may not come together, Reuters reported.
Reuters brought up the tensions between China and Vietnam over the South China Sea issue, citing it as a reason Vietnam should consider buying the US warplanes, with another named reason being that the Ukraine crisis is making it harder for Vietnam to acquire weapons from its longstanding arms supplier Russia.
But Chinese military experts said that the US proposal has its own hegemonic goals.
The Vietnamese air force now mainly operates Russian-made fighter jets, and if the US-made F-16s replace them, it means that the US could win another major customer from Russia, Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, told the Global Times on Sunday.
By offering F-16 fighter jets, potentially second-hand, to Vietnam and boosting defense ties, the US aims to gain another foothold in the region through adding political strings like demanding the use of Vietnam air force and naval bases, Wei said.
Taking advantage of this new foothold, the US military can stir up more troubles in the South China Sea to build up a military encirclement and contain China, Wei said.
However, analysts believe that Vietnam can weigh the pros and cons independently and avoid falling into a trap that would make it a US pawn.
If Vietnam buys US fighter jets, it could find itself controlled by the US, and its defense policies and military activities could become dependent on US decisions, Wei said. “Vietnam will unlikely find this acceptable,” he said.
(Global Times)
