Vietnam and the South China Sea Disputes

Greetings from the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University where Thanh Hai Do is speaking on "Vietnam and the South China Sea Disputes". The first question he asked was why so little progress has been made on this territorial dispute compared to others. He pointed to Vietnam's ambivalent strategic posture, wanting to assert their claims, but not upset China. Vietnam is hedging by normalizing relations with the USA, joining ASEAN and working with oil companies. Interestingly one company Veitnam is working with is Russia's Gazprom. Thanh Hai Do's 2009 paper "Vietnam’s evolving claims in the South China Sea" is also available.

It seems to me that if Vietnam can agree a common position with other countries in the region there is the possibility of negotiating with China. Countries around the South China Sea probably do not want to have to be seen to be aligned with China or the USA in a great power dispute.

Last night in the presentation "A Small Navy in a Great War: Australians at sea, 1914-18" Dr David Stevens pointed out how the Royal Australian Navy (RAN)  played a key role in South East Asia during WW1. He argued that the RAN was seen as separate from the Royal Navy and so was seen separate, to some extent, from the great powers involved in the European conflict. Australia was able to play this role as in the years before WW1 it developed a small but powerful navy. This is detailed in his book "All Respects Ready: Australia’s Navy in World War One".

The RAN is now developing a significant surface force of Amphibious Assault Ships, upgraded ANZAC class frigates, and Hobart class destroyers. These might be called on to play a role in the South China Sea, being more acceptable to all the parties involved than the presence of the US 7th Fleet. One way to make this more credible would be for Australia to modify its order for F-35A aircraft and take early delivery of a small number of F-35B aircraft to operate from HMAS Canberra.

ABSTRACT
Over the last few years, academic and public inquiry into the South China Sea disputes has increased significantly as tensions in this region have flared up without any signs of abating. However, much of the attention has naturally focused on a rising China, which is the most powerful claimant in the dispute and the potential disrupter of the regional order. Other smaller claimants have been largely overlooked, or have been studied within the context of China’s policy. This imbalance in the literature has the potential to distort the cycle of the actions and reactions which have shaped the dynamics of the disputes.
This research, which offers the view from a smaller claimant but a key rival to China, seeks to address this gap in the current discourse on South China Sea politics. Specifically, it will draw on a wide range of primary and secondary sources to trace and account for continuity and changes in Vietnam’s approach to its disputes in the South China Sea with an emphasis on the period between 1991 and 2011. It is argued that in this period, Vietnam oscillated between bandwagoning and hedging strategies to respond to China’s rising power and assertiveness in the maritime domain.
The study, which presents the case of Vietnam in the South China Sea, examines the way in which Vietnam has managed its relations with China. It offers a critical evaluation of the realist school in international relations about how a medium-sized state responds to a power transition in the region. Though the case of Vietnam is unique, it is indicative of how regional countries react to shifts in power relations and to changes in China’s foreign and security posture.
Thanh Hai Do is a PhD Candidate in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at the Australian National University. He is a recipient of the Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Award, and has commenced his doctoral studies in Australia in July 2011. Prior to this academic endeavour, Thanh Hai worked as a research fellow at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam.

Prospect of armed conflict in the South China Sea

Professor Leszek Buszynski, Dr Andrew Carr and Thanh Hai Do will discuss "Prospects and perspectives on the South China Sea Dispute", at the Australian National National University in Canberra, 4pm, 7 April 2015.

Prospects of armed conflict over the South China Sea maritime dispute are more real than ever as regional tension has escalated to dangerous levels in recent years. The dispute affects not only the claimants involved, but also peace and security in the wider region. Hugh White estimates that it could turn into 'the biggest war for many decades, and possibly the biggest since the Second World War'. As such, it is important to be aware of its significance from a range of perspectives.
With this in mind, the ANU ASEAN Society invites you to join us in our first public lecture of the year - 'Prospects and Perspectives on the South China Sea Dispute'. We have invited three distinguished speakers who will help you gain greater understanding of dispute from the perspectives of some key actors including ASEAN, Vietnam, Australia and the US. The speakers are:
• Professor Leszek Buszynski - Lecturer at the National Security College. He has done research on the South China Sea for more than twenty years and is currently engaged in a project on the South China Sea and Australia's Regional Security Environment.
• Dr Andrew Carr - Research Fellow at the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre. His latest book Winning the Peace, Australia’s Campaigns to Change the Asia-Pacific examines how Australia has influenced Asia's security and economic order.
• Thanh Hai Do - PhD Candidate at the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs. His thesis seeks to account for Vietnam's approach to claims in the South China Sea. Thanh Hai was Deputy Director of the Centre for Political and Security Studies at the Institute for Foreign Policy and Strategic Studies, a think-tank affiliated to the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam.

The lecture will consist of presentations followed by a panel discussion during which you will be able to pose questions to our speakers.

There will be opportunity to interact with the speakers following the presentations.
Light refreshments will be provided.

Vietnamese Government to use Open Source Software

Agencies of the Vietnamese Government have been directed to use Open Source Software in 2009. It seems that a similar directive was issued some time ago, but the government isn't happy with the pace of implementation and so has made the ruling firmer. One reason is to combat piracy of Microsoft software:

Implementation Decision 235/2004/QD-TTg dated 02 3 2004 by the Prime Minister approved the project on the overall application and development of open source software in Vietnam period 2004-2008, the Ministry of Information Information and Communications has issued the list of products open source software to meet the requirements for the organization to the state (including software: OpenOffice office, e-mail on Mozilla stations Thunderbird, the Mozilla Firefox web browser and type in English Unikey); Ministry of Science and Technology has developed documentation and use training software for many agencies, organizations across the state country.

To promote the use of free software open source (also known as open source software write-off is PMNM), contributing to limit the violation of software copyright, Minister of Information and Media indicator :

1. The units responsible for information technology (IT) by the Ministry, Ministry of agencies, Governmental agencies (hereinafter called the ministries, departments) and the Department of Information and Communication (Department TT & TT) of the provinces, cities directly under the Central Government (hereinafter referred to as provinces, cities):
a) Implement the installation and training, instructions to use the software above the staff in the units:

Latest to 30/6/2009, ensure 100% workstation unit responsible for IT Department and TT & TT installed, 100% staff is trained, using the instructions in the minimum 50% of staff can use the expertise in the job and can help guide the units under other ministries, departments, provinces and cities.

Latest date to 31/12/2009, ensure 70% workstation in the units under ministries, departments, provinces, cities are installed, 70% of staff are trained, guided to use, in which at least 40% of staff use the software in the above work.
There are plans to gradually increase the population of documents, materials, information exchange within the agencies, units of the ministries, departments, provincial, city editor, handled by the software mentioned above, ensure 31/12/2010 to most staff in the agencies, units of the ministries, departments, provinces, cities using the software in the above work.

b) Advising, proposed to the heads of agencies, departments, Chairman of provinces and cities: the solution, measures to ensure implementation of the tasks mentioned above, incorporating, including contents of this directive to plan the application of IT units, advocacy, mobilization, encourage emulation movement between units and individuals in the ministries, departments, provinces and cities City on the use of PMNM; bringing the IT applications and general use PMNM in particular to review the content to emulate, rewarded annually by the individual units.

c) The (at least 6 times a month) organization assessment and preliminary results, draw experience implementing the tasks, the report Ministries, departments, committees of provinces, cities and the Ministry of Information and Media.

2. 2nd associations and enterprise IT:

a) The IT associations organize practical work, enabling members to exchange information and experience to continuously improve energy exploitation, providing products, services PMNM; coordination, support unit responsible for IT, the Department of TT & TT perform tasks above; support the development of community PMNM Vietnamese; promote international cooperation on PMNM activities and links between community PMNM Vietnamese organizations, community PMNM world.

b) The business provides computer: Install the software above the computer when provided to agencies, state organizations, not to provide the market for computer software with no copyright legal.

c) facilities, business services and training IT: positive, active construction programs, curriculum and organization of training courses on PMNM; take the training to use the product PMNM the training of basic information, information office, information technology advanced.

d) The business software, business services IT: Capacity building services software in general and in particular for PMNM state agencies consider the software as a service (SaaS ); encourage the development of ideas, products and services based on PMNM.

3. The units of the Ministry of Information and Media:

a) The Information Technology:

- Host, in collaboration with IT Office under the Ministry of Science and Technology and other relevant units to update the list of PMNM meet requirements for the organization to the state; complete documents usage instructions; organization, community support the implementation of Vietnamese products PMNM;

- Investigation, survey, aggregate and provide up: the list, address and business services PMNM, facilities, business services training PMNM; versions installed, technical materials, guidelines using PMNM common;

- Guide, check and monitor the implementation of the Directive; received, general coordination with the units involved to resolve the authorities, or report the Minister to resolve the petitions, the Vietnam's ministries, sectors and localities on the application and development PMNM, as well as difficulties arising in implementing Directive; report of the Minister of the results of the implementation.

b) Department of Applied Information Technology: The owner of incorporating, including the content of this directive, as well as content and tasks to promote the application PMNM in general, in the written regulations, instructions of IT applications, documents guiding plan, program, project applications in the IT operations of state agencies.

c) Information Center:

- Implementation of the tasks assigned to the unit responsible for IT in this Directive. To ensure the units of the Ministry in the use of software mentioned above;

- Host, in collaboration with the press, media propaganda, broadcast, raise awareness about the benefits of PMNM; mobilizing applications PMNM in the operation of agencies, organizations, enterprises and people.

500. Institute of Software and Digital Content Vietnam Center rescue emergency computer Vietnam (VNCERT): Preparation of ready to support ministries, sectors and localities implemented using PMNM above; Coordinate with IT Department to review, update the list PMNM meet the requirements for the organization to the state.

4. 4th of implementation:

a) The heads of agencies, units of the Ministry, heads the unit responsible for the Ministry of IT, industry, Director of TT & TT provinces, cities, the association, business IT has the responsibility of thoroughly spirit Directive, customized implementation of the tasks mentioned above, organizations quickly deploy and periodic reports results of the implementation.

b) The unit responsible for IT, the TT & TTT: The responsibility for the unit leaders directly responsible for promoting applications PMNM, is responsible for organizing implementation, management is over, check and evaluate the applications in PMNM units and units in other ministries, departments, provinces, cities themselves.

c) Chairman of the provinces, cities directly under the central government: The Department of TT & TT and other departments, agencies related to the adjustment of this Directive; active layout and taking part in total charge of the application and development of IT for its implementation using PMNM above, the mechanisms, policies, layout resources, create favorable conditions for the implementation. /.

From: Directive on promoting use of open source software in activities of agencies, organisations of the state (translation by Google), Ministry of Information and Communications, Socialist Republic of Vietnam, 07 /2008