A U.S. Aircraft Carrier Anchors Off Vietnam For The First Time Since The War

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In Vietnam's capital Hanoi there are lots of museums about past wars the Vietnamese have fought, including against the French but especially against the Americans.

The B-52 Victory Museum is strewn with broken pieces of fuselages and tails from downed U.S. aircraft. What's missing are the visitors. Eighty-two-year-old Pham Hong Thuy — sitting alone watching after his grandson — explains why.

"The war ended decades ago," says Pham, who fought the Americans at the 1968 Battle of Khe Sanh. "People around the ages of 20, 30 or under 40, they do not know much about the war, they don't care about the war," he says.

"The U.S. and the Vietnam are good friends now," he adds. "And the war is in the past."

The arrival of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier, the USS Carl Vinson, at Vietnam's port city of Danang is a reminder of that growing friendship. It's the first visit by a U.S. aircraft carrier since the end of the war in 1975, and it comes amid rising tensions in the region over China's aggressive territorial expansion in the South China Sea.

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Vietnam is usually cautious about antagonizing China, its neighbor to the north with which it has a history of conflict. That makes the timing of the visit even more interesting.

"It was a U.S. initiative to request the carrier visit," says Carl Thayer, a Vietnam scholar and emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales, Canberra. "It was mentioned in a presidential statement [by President Trump]. And Vietnam has taken a deep breath and decided that it's worth the risk to bring an American carrier there because of China's unrelenting militarization."

The USS Carl Vinson, a nuclear-powered aircraft supercarrier, came along with a cruiser and a destroyer — with more than 6,000 sailors on board. It will spend four days in Danang.

The site is heavy with symbolism. It's the same port city where U.S. combat troops first landed to support South Vietnam's fight against the communist north in March 1965.

It's also the closest Vietnamese city to the disputed islands and waters of the South China Sea — or the East Sea, as Vietnam calls it.

"The USS Carl Vinson is the mightiest warship afloat," Thayer says. "It brings along with it escort ships with more firepower than China can assemble in all of its seven artificial islands or even [its] South Sea Fleet, basically. So it's a massive display of military might."

And it's one that delights Nguyen Duc Huy, an 88-year-old retired major general in the North Vietnamese army.

His home in Hanoi is decorated with photos, including one of him meeting Cuba's Fidel Castro from 1973 in Quang Tri province during Vietnam's war against the U.S.

The general says he joined the army in 1947 and fought the French, the Americans, the Cambodians and against China twice. The first time was in 1979, during the monthlong border war China launched against Vietnam to punish it for invading Cambodia. The second time was during the mid-1980s, when the two countries skirmished repeatedly along Vietnam's northern border.

"We welcome the visit of such a mighty show of force by a friend," he says. "A show of force that's also a warning to China." He says that China and Vietnam are now friends — in theory — but "they continue to take our islands and ocean whenever they have a chance. And they even continue to want our land," he says.

"Please remember," the general adds, "the Vietnamese people have thousands of years experience fighting against the Chinese. What's going on now," he says, referring to the disputes over islands and fishing rights in the South China Sea, "isn't new."

Hoang Ngo Giao, who directs the Institute for Policy, Law and Development Studies in Hanoi, also welcomes the ship visit and sees it as a warning to China. Though Vietnam's government has been very careful not to label it as such.

In the runup to the U.S. Navy's visit, there's been little coverage in the Vietnamese state-run media, in part, analysts say, to avoid antagonizing China.

Hoang and other analysts credit the Trump administration for making the visit a reality, and for showing strength against China in the South China Sea.

"Many political observers in Vietnam, including myself, think Mr. Trump has taken affirmative, solid and substantive steps in the South China Sea," he says. "If the Obama administration had [taken]such strong moves, I think China would not have done all that strong militarization like they did in the Paracel and Spratly islands." Under President Obama, he says, "There was much more talking and diplomacy but little action."

The Obama administration repeatedly advocated for free navigation in the contentious region but he was criticized, particularly by Republican opponents, for not beefing up the Navy to deter China from building artificial islands in the South China Sea.

U.S. and Vietnam are pals?

Since the United States and Vietnam normalized relations in 1995, there have been regular goodwill visits by U.S. naval vessels and a fast-growing and increasingly important economic relationship between the two former enemies, though the U.S. has routinely criticized communist Vietnam's dismal record on human rights.

Although some Communist Party hard-liners may be wary of aligning too closely with the old foe, many Vietnamese say they want the American attention.

Take fisherman Ho Ngoc Phuoc. He says two boats he runs out of Danang harbor are constantly harassed by Chinese vessels when he tries to fish in international waters near the islands claimed by both China and Vietnam.

"We have wooden boats and they have steel boats and they use water cannon to chase us away," he says. "Sometimes they damage our boats, too, so we have to run away."

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One of his captains, 46-year-old Pham Van Thanh, is hopeful that the U.S. carrier visit leads to increased freedom of navigation operations by the U.S. in the East Sea/South China Sea.

"The more U.S presence in the East Sea, the less complicated the East see is and there will be less harassment against Vietnamese fisherman," Pham Van Thanh says. "There's nothing we can do with our neighbor China. So if there is more U.S. presence," he says, "the East Sea will be more stable."

And more stability, he adds, could mean a better catch and more money at the end of the day.

At Danang's Long Caphe, a popular coffee shop, a group of young architects say pretty much the same thing. They're frustrated at their government for not taking a stronger stand against China. They mostly blame the politics of the countries' shared communist ideology.

Better ties with the U.S., says one of the architects, 28-year-old Huynh Duc Cuong, would be welcome.

"If we have strong friend military, big countries like China can no longer use their might to create injustice," he says. "For our fishermen, for example. It's in our territory, but we are chased away instead. Young people like me are frustrated about that," he says. "So such visits would help create more justice and make China more mindful of their actions.

Across the table, his colleague, 31-year-old Nguyen Thanh Dat nods in agreement. "To me, the U.S. has never been the enemy he says. Our enemy has always been to the north."</s>NORTH KOREA - Just one week after the Winter Olympics, in Pyongyang, North and South Korea are making steps forward to diplomacy.

High-level South Korean delegates went to North Korea and met with Kim Jong Un, Monday and one hot topic they're hoping to diffuse is nuclear weapons.

President Trump says if the U.S. and North Korea will work together they have to get rid of their nuclear weapons program.

This is the first time since 2011 Jong Un has spoken with South Korean leaders in person.

Another history making moment took place in Vietnam when the USS Carl Vinson arrived at port.

The U.S. Navy and Vietnamese military even held a meet and greet.

The 95,000 ton ship is a big sign that the United States supports Vietnam when it comes to standing up against Chinese aggression in the South China Sea.</s>The USS Carl Vinson arrived in Danang, Vietnam, today, becoming the first aircraft carrier to dock in the country since the Vietnam War ended in 1975.

The guided missile cruiser USS Lake Champlain and destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer are also making the port call.

The Vietnamese port was also the site of the first arrival of U.S. combat troops, when Marines landed there in 1965.

The three American ships with about 6,500 sailors and Marines aboard are conducting a port visit that demonstrates how far U.S.-Vietnamese relations have progressed. Vietnamese leaders agreed to the four-day port call during President Donald J. Trump’s visit to the country last year.

“This visit marks a significant milestone in our bilateral relations and demonstrates the U.S. support for a strong, prosperous and independent Vietnam,” Defense Department spokesman Army Col. Robert Manning III told Pentagon reporters this morning. “The visit also builds on the positive momentum of the comprehensive partnership between the U.S. and Vietnam, and will not only serve to strengthen the bilateral defense relationship, but will also help enhance cultural and professional ties.”

The sailors and Marines will participate in cultural exchanges with their Vietnamese counterparts, and some personnel will visit a center for victims of Agent Orange -- a defoliant that American planes sprayed on the jungle to remove cover.

“Our nations’ relationship has reached new heights in the past few years, and USS Carl Vinson’s port visit to Vietnam is a reflection of that,” said Navy Adm. Scott Swift, the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. “I am confident that engagements like this will further expand the comprehensive partnership between the United States and Vietnam.”

The port call and U.S. operations in the South China Sea are routine, Manning said. “They demonstrate our commitment to regional prosperity and stability,” he said.

The United States and Vietnam normalized relations in 1995. The first port visit to Vietnam following the war was by the cruiser USS Vandergrift in November 2003, which docked at Ho Chi Minh City on the Saigon River. In June 2012, then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited the USNS Richard C. Byrd in Cam Ranh Bay -- the logistics hub of U.S. forces during the Vietnam War.

In October 2016, two U.S. ships -- the submarine tender USS Frank Cable and destroyer USS John S. McCain -- also visited Cam Ranh Bay.

The South China Sea is off the coast of Vietnam, and that body of water sees $5 trillion in cargo pass through each year. A number of nations have competing territorial claims in the South China Sea region. Vietnam, China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Brunei, Thailand and Singapore have disputes in the area.

China has been aggressive in asserting claims in the South China Sea area, and has built islands on reefs and militarized those facilities.

The United States takes no sides in the disputes, but insists that freedom of navigation for all is maintained.</s>DANANG, Vietnam (AP) — For the first time since the Vietnam War, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier is paying a visit to a Vietnamese port, seeking to bolster both countries' efforts to stem expansionism by China in the South China Sea.

Monday's visit by the USS Carl Vinson brings more than 5,000 crewmembers to the central coastal city of Danang, the largest such U.S. military presence in Vietnam since the Southeast Asian nation was unified under Communist leadership after the war ended in 1975.

The Vinson strike group deployed from San Diego in January.

The Carl Vinson, accompanied by a cruiser and a destroyer, is visiting as China increases its military buildup in the Paracel islands and seven artificial islands in the Spratlys in maritime territory also claimed by Vietnam. China claims most of the South China Sea and has challenged traditional U.S. naval supremacy in the western Pacific.

"The visit of aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson to Vietnam signifies an increased level of trust between the two former enemies, a strengthened defense relationship between them, and reflects America's continued naval engagement with the region," said Le Hong Hiep, a research fellow at the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

The ship's mission includes technical exchanges, sports matches and visits to an orphanage and a center for victims of Agent Orange, a toxic defoliant sprayed by U.S. forces to deny cover for Communist fighters during the war. It marks a fine-tuning, rather than a turning point, in relations. The U.S. Navy has staged activities in Vietnam for its Pacific Partnership humanitarian and civic missions in nine of the past 12 years.

"I think the visit by USS Carl Vinson demonstrates our commitment to the U.S- Vietnam partnership. It also demonstrates the dramatic progress we made in our bilateral relationship in recent years," he said.

The ambassador said the two countries share a range of interests that include "a desire to maintain peace, prosperity, unimpeded commerce, freedom of navigation upon which the region and its economies depend."

The United States normalized relations with Vietnam in 1995 and lifted an arms embargo in 2016, and the two former adversaries have steadily improved relations in all areas, including trade, investment and security.

The visit of an aircraft carrier — a more than 100,000-ton manifestation of U.S. global military projection — reaffirms closer relations as Beijing flexes it political, economic and military muscle in Southeast Asia, and Washington seeks to re-establish its influence.

"Although the visit is mainly symbolic and would not be able to change China's behavior, especially in the South China Sea, it is still necessary in conveying the message that the U.S. will be there to stay," Hiep said.

Separately from this week's mission, U.S. officials say American warships continue sailing without prior notice close to China-occupied islands and atolls, an aggressive way of signaling to Beijing that the U.S. does not recognize its sovereignty over those areas.

Hiep said the Carl Vinson's visit is likely to irritate China, but that Beijing will not take it too seriously.

"They understand well the strategic rationale behind the rapprochement between Vietnam and the U.S., which was largely driven by China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea," he said. "However, China also knows that Vietnam is unlikely to side with the U.S. militarily to challenge China."

Vietnam, while traditionally wary of its huge northern neighbor, shares China's system of single-party rule and intolerance for political dissent.

Economic relations with the United States in recent years have served as a counterbalance to Vietnam's political affinity with China.

"The United States now is a very important trading partner with Vietnam and it is the most important destination of Vietnam's exports," said Joseph Cheng, a professor of political science at the City University of Hong Kong. "In terms of security, both countries certainly share substantial common interest in the containment of China in view of the territorial dispute between China and Vietnam."

"However, it seems that Vietnam does not intend to become an ally of the United States. It is basically a kind of hedging strategy, a kind of balance of power strategy," he said.

The first U.S. Marines arrived in Danang in 1965, marking the beginning of large-scale American involvement in the Vietnam War. Some 58,000 American soldiers and an estimated 3 million Vietnamese were killed in the war.

Danang, which was a major U.S. military base during the war, is now Vietnam's third-largest city and is in the midst of a construction boom as dozens of resorts and hotels pop up along its scenic coastline.

Several Danang residents said Monday that they welcomed the Navy visit.

"During the war, I was scared when I saw American soldiers," said Tran Thi Luyen, 55, who runs a small coffee shop in the city. "Now the aircraft carrier comes with a completely different mission, a mission of peace and promoting economic and military cooperation between the two countries."

"I'm very happy and excited with the carrier's visit," he said. "Increased cooperation between the two countries in economic, diplomatic and military areas would serve as a counterbalance to Beijing's expansionism."</s>SEOUL, South Korea — The USS Carl Vinson — the U.S. Navy's massive, nuclear powered aircraft carrier — arrived in Vietnam on Monday, marking the first time such a ship has docked in the country since the Vietnam War.

The Nimitz-class supercarrier, accompanied by a carrier and a destroyer, anchored off the coast of Da Nang — the city where 3,500 Marines landed in March 1965 as the first American ground troops in a conflict that would eventually leave 58,000 Americans and millions of Vietnamese dead.

The USS Carl Vinson, with more than 6,000 crew members, is more than 1,000 feet long and weighs more than 100,000 tons. The port call will mark the largest U.S. military presence in Vietnam since the almost two decade-long war ended in 1975. The U.S. sailors are scheduled to visit a treatment center for victims affected by the chemical defoliant Agent Orange during the war. A U.S. Navy band will also perform a concert in Da Nang.

More: U.S. carrier not near North Korea after all

The ship's arrival is the latest step forward in improving military and economic ties since the two former adversaries normalized relations in 1995. Former president Barack Obama lifted a decades-old ban on the sale of military equipment to Vietnam during a 2016 visit and last year, the U.S. transferred a decommissioned Coast Guard cutter to Vietnam and signed a three-year plan for defense cooperation.

Analysts say the USS Carl Vinson's landmark visit also sends a signal to China, whose aggressive land reclamation and military buildup activities in the South China Sea have alarmed smaller regional neighbors and represent an increasing challenge to U.S. naval dominance in the Pacific.

“The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier is the epitome of modern naval power,” wrote Carl Thayer, professor of politics at the Australian Defense Force Academy, in a note. “The message the USS Carl Vinson sends is that the U.S. will maintain its naval presence in the South China Sea and that Vietnam supports the presence of the U.S. Navy as long as it contributes to regional peace and stability.”

Vietnam Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang said the visit will “continue to promote bilateral relations within the framework of the two countries' comprehensive partnership and contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, cooperation and development in the region.”

China claims sovereignty over almost all of the South China Sea, where more than $5 trillion of goods are shipped each year through some of the world’s busiest waterways. Vietnam has overlapping claims on some islands in the sea’s Spratly and Paracel chains, and tensions have flared between the two neighbors over these disputes. In 2014, Beijing deployed an oil rig in disputed waters near Vietnam, which led to a standoff between naval vessels and sparked violent anti-China demonstrations in Vietnam.

Historical animosity towards China runs deep in Vietnam, which was occupied by its much larger neighbor for much of the first millennium AD. However, China remains Vietnam’s largest trading partner, and its rising role as the dominant superpower in the region requires a careful balancing act for Vietnam.

The United States hasn’t taken any official position on South China Sea territorial claims but conducts “freedom of navigation” operations in the waterways by sailing ships without notice through disputed areas. China has condemned the operations and has responded in the past by scrambling fighter jets to monitor the U.S. vessels.</s>DANANG, Vietnam (AP) - For the first time since the Vietnam War, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier is paying a visit to a Vietnamese port, seeking to bolster both countries' efforts to stem expansionism by China in the South China Sea.

Monday's visit by the USS Carl Vinson, accompanied by a cruiser and a destroyer, brings more than 6,000 crew members to the central coastal city of Danang, the largest such U.S. military presence in Vietnam since the Southeast Asian nation was unified under Communist leadership after the war ended in 1975.

The visit comes at a time when China is increasing its military buildup in the Paracel islands and seven artificial islands in the Spratlys in maritime territory also claimed by Vietnam. China claims most of the South China Sea and has challenged traditional U.S. naval supremacy in the western Pacific.

FILE - In this Feb. 17, 2018, file photo, fishermen on board a small boat pass by the USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier at anchor off Manila, Philippines, for a five-day port call. For the first time since the Vietnam War, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier is visiting a Vietnamese port, seeking to bolster both countries' efforts to stem expansionism by China in the South China Sea Monday, March 5, 2018. The visit by the USS Carl Vinson brings more than 6,000 crew members to the central coastal city of Danang, the largest such U.S. military presence in Vietnam since the Southeast Asian nation was unified under Communist leadership after the war ended in 1975.(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File)

"The visit of aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson to Vietnam signifies an increased level of trust between the two former enemies, a strengthened defense relationship between them, and reflects America's continued naval engagement with the region," said Le Hong Hiep, a research fellow at the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute.

The ships' mission - a "friendship" visit that includes technical exchanges, sports matches and other community activities, according to Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang - marks a fine-tuning, rather than a turning point in relations. The U.S. Navy has staged activities in Vietnam for its Pacific Partnership humanitarian and civic missions in nine of the past 12 years.

Hang said the visit would "continue to promote bilateral relations within the framework of the two countries' comprehensive partnership and contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, cooperation and development in the region."

The United States normalized relations with Vietnam in 1995 and lifted an arms embargo in 2016, and the two former adversaries have steadily improved bilateral relations in all areas, including trade, investment and security.

The inclusion in this week's visit of an aircraft carrier - a more than 100,000-ton manifestation of U.S. global military projection - reaffirms closer relations as Beijing flexes it political, economic and military muscle in Southeast Asia, and Washington seeks to re-establish its influence.

"Although the visit is mainly symbolic and would not be able to change China's behavior, especially in the South China Sea, it is still necessary in conveying the message that the U.S. will be there to stay," Hiep said.

Separately from this week's mission, U.S. officials have said American warships continue sailing without prior notice close to China-occupied islands and atolls, an aggressive way of signaling to Beijing that it does not recognize its sovereignty over those areas.

Hiep said that the Carl Vinson's visit is likely to irritate China, but that Beijing will not take it too seriously.

"They understand well the strategic rationale behind the rapprochement between Vietnam and the U.S., which was largely driven by China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea," he said. "However, China also knows that Vietnam is unlikely to side with the U.S. militarily to challenge China."

Vietnam, while traditionally wary of its huge northern neighbor, shares China's system of single-party rule and intolerance for political dissent.

Economic relations with the United States in recent years have served as a counterbalance to Vietnam's political affinity with China.

"The United States now is a very important trading partner with Vietnam and it is the most important destination of Vietnam's exports," said Joseph Cheng, a professor of political science at the City University of Hong Kong. "In terms of security, both countries certainly share substantial common interest in the containment of China in view of the territorial dispute between China and Vietnam."

"However, it seems that Vietnam does not intend to become an ally of the United States. It is basically a kind of hedging strategy, a kind of balance of power strategy," he said.

The first U.S. Marines arrived in Danang in 1965, marking the beginning of large-scale American involvement in the war, which ended in 1975 with the communist North's victory, reunifying the country. Some 58,000 American soldiers and an estimated 3 million Vietnamese were killed in the war.

Danang, which was a major U.S. military base during the war, is now Vietnam's third-largest city and is in the midst of a construction boom as dozens of resorts and hotels pop up along its scenic coastline.

Several Danang residents said Monday that they welcomed the Navy's visit.

"During the war, I was scared when I saw American soldiers," said Tran Thi Luyen, 55, who runs a small coffee shop in the city. "Now the aircraft carrier comes with a complete different mission, a mission of peace and promoting economic and military cooperation between the two countries."

"I'm very happy and excited with the carrier's visit," he said. "Increased cooperation between the two countries in economic, diplomatic and military areas would serve as a counterbalance to Beijing's expansionism."</s>USS Carl Vinson Will Spend The Next Few Days In Da Nang, Vietnam

It's the first U.S. carrier visit since the end of the Vietnam war, and comes at a time of increasing tension between the U.S. and China, and among China and some of its neighbors — including Vietnam.</s>US aircraft carrier in Vietnam for historic visit

A Vietnamese soldier keeps watch in front of US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson after its arrival at a port in Danang, Vietnam March 5, 2018. — Reuters pic DANANG, March 5 — A US aircraft carrier arrived in Vietnam today for the first time since the end of the war, as the former foes bolster military ties in the face of Beijing’s build-up in the disputed South China Sea.

The USS Carl Vinson will make a four-day port call to the central city of Danang for a highly symbolic trip that will include a visit to a centre for victims of Agent Orange, the toxic defoliant sprayed over large swathes of land by the US during the Vietnam war.

But ongoing tensions in the South China Sea loom over the trip as Beijing continues to build artificial islands capable of hosting military installations — much to the chagrin of Vietnam and other claimants to the sea.

Though the US is not a claimant to the resource-rich waterway, it has long lobbied for freedom of navigation in the sea to counter China’s growing influence.

Analysts say the port call, which follows a visit to the Philippines last month, is a chance for the United States to flex its military muscle in Asia.

“It’s a US push... to demonstrate a massive naval presence in the South China Sea area to China, that the US is staying engaged,” Vietnam expert Carl Thayer told AFP ahead of the trip.

Vietnam remains the most vocal claimant in the region after the Philippines backed off under China-friendly President Rodrigo Duterte. Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also have claims in the sea.

Duterte has refused to implement a landmark 2016 international tribunal ruling in Manila’s favour over its competing claims with Beijing.

“The Philippines has just rolled over, China is continually militarising and if the US doesn’t maintain a presence in the region, Vietnam’s got nowhere to hide,” Thayer said.

The visit is also being touted as a key landmark between the former bitter enemies, whose relations have seen an extraordinary turnaround since the end of the war in 1975.

Though US ships have regularly docked in Vietnam in the past, this is the first time an aircraft carrier will make a port call to the country.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang said the visit will “contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, cooperation and development in the region”.

The nuclear-powered USS Carl Vinson is home to 5,300 sailors, pilots and crew and 72 aircraft and will be in Danang — once a key US airbase — until its departure on Friday.

The visit includes friendly basketball and soccer matches between US sailors and locals, along with an orphanage visit and navy band concerts. — AFP</s>An American nuclear-powered aircraft carrier has docked at Danang, Vietnam, for the first time since the end of the war between the former foes, in what is viewed as a push by Washington to challenge Beijing’s presence in the disputed South China Sea.

 In a highly symbolic visit, the USS Carl Vinson, which is home to 5,300 sailors, pilots and crew and 72 aircraft, arrived on Tuesday for a 4-day stay, giving the US a chance to flex its military muscle in the Asian country for the first time since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Although no US aircraft carrier has been to Vietnam since the end of the war, other smaller American warships have made high-level visits as ties improved in recent years. Washington normalized relations with Vietnam in 1995 and lifted an arms embargo in 2016. During their stay, US sailors will play friendly basketball and soccer matches with locals, hold navy band concerts and visit a center for victims of Agent Orange, the toxic defoliant sprayed over large swathes of land by the US during the Vietnam War.

 The visit comes against the backdrop of long-running territorial disputes between China and its neighbors, including Vietnam, in the South China Sea, where they have overlapping sovereignty claims.

 US aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson arrives at a port in Danang, Vietnam, March 5, 2018. (Photo by Reuters)

 The US, which is an extra-regional country, has been taking the side of China’s rival claimants in the regional disputes. “It’s a US push… to demonstrate a massive naval presence in the South China Sea area to China, that the US is staying engaged,” Vietnam expert Carl Thayer told AFP of the aircraft carrier’s stop in Vietnam. Vietnam seeking to pacify China Prior to the visit, Vietnamese envoys had been working for months to ease the concerns of China over the visit and the prospect of broader military cooperation between Hanoi and Washington, according to diplomats and others familiar with the talks.

 US carriers frequently ply the South China Sea in a rising pattern of naval deployments, and are now routinely followed by Chinese naval vessels, naval officers in the region say.“Even as it moves forward with the U.S., Vietnam has been engaging China over South China Sea tensions,” said Le Hong Hiep, a Vietnam expert at Singapore’s ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute. “They might be irritated but gradualism is the key word here…Vietnam will only embrace the US at a pace that doesn’t cause an over-reaction from China.—Agencies</s>For the first time since the end of the Vietnam War more than four decades ago, a US Navy aircraft carrier will set anchor in the country Monday.

Publicly, the United States has portrayed the four-day visit by the USS Carl Vinson and its contingent of 5,000 sailors and aviators as an historic opportunity to enhance the budding friendship that has emerged between the two former foes.

But, it’s far from a standard port call.

Analysts say the visit by the aircraft carrier to Vietnam is a clear shot at Beijing, designed to counter China’s aggressive island building and militarization in the South China Sea.

“Vietnam has been deeply concerned about China’s pugilistic and aggressive moves in the South China Sea,” said John Kirby, a retired US Navy rear admiral and CNN military and diplomatic analyst.

“They are worried about where China is going, and they have wanted for years now to have a better relationship with the United States.”

The 95,000-ton carrier is expected to anchor two nautical miles off the port of Danang, which was a key battleground during the war that ended in 1975.

Cultural exchanges, including culinary and sporting activities, will take place between some of the US military personnel on board and their Vietnamese counterparts. Some US sailors will also visit a center for victims of Agent Orange, the toxic chemical compound used by the US during the conflict to destroy jungle and forest.

The subject of China, and Chinese activity in the South China Sea, is likely to loom large over the visit.

Since 2014, China has forged ahead with island building in the disputed waters, despite a landmark ruling in 2016 by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague, which said there was no legal basis for China’s maritime claims.

China’s claims to the South China Sea stretch roughly 1,000 miles from its southern shores, pitting it against Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.

High-resolution aerial images of China’s reclamation efforts in the Spratly Islands, recently obtained by the Philippine Inquirer newspaper, show that the reefs and sandbars have been turned into island fortresses, with ports, air strips, lighthouses, hangars and multistory buildings.

Vietnam is the among the claimants that has stood up most publicly against China, after the Philippines — long one of most ardent critics of Chinese expansion in the area — reversed course under President Rodrigo Duterte.

In June 2017, Vietnam refused Chinese demands to cease drilling on Vanguard Bank, an area that belongs to Vietnam under international law. Vietnam had granted a subsidiary of Spanish company Repsol drilling rights to the bank. China claims the area is part of its territory.

Vietnam eventually backed down a month later, under pressure from China.

Vietnam has also urged its fellow ASEAN nations to take a stronger stance against China in the South China Sea, though the body has largely chosen not to forcefully challenge Beijing.

“This is obviously a game of balance of power, and China is flexing its muscle in the South China Sea,” said Le Honh Hiep, a fellow at Singapore’s ISEAS Yusof Ishak Institute.

“Other countries will need to do more to counteract China.”

The United States has long had a robust naval presence in Southeast Asia, in part to ensure the openness of the South China Sea trading routes. Some $5 trillion in goods pass through those waters each year.

Under US President Donald Trump and his predecessor, President Barack Obama, the US has conducted “freedom of navigation” operations, sailing military vessels and flying planes close to islands China controls, often triggering heated warnings from Chinese patrols.

But it has done little to rein in China’s expansionism in the South China Sea.

“The US does need to take a consistent and perhaps more assertive approach to how to deal with this advancement,” said Kirby.

“I do not think it’s too late to forestall further militarization, but I think we need to have a comprehensive — and not just a military — strategy for how to deal with this.”

In Vietnam, the United States sees an opportunity to join forces over a common problem and push back against China’s growing influence in Asia.

US military ties with Vietnam have deepened since 2016, when Obama lifted the decades-old embargo on US arms sales to the country as part of his Asia pivot.

Under Trump, military cooperation with Hanoi has continued.

Despite pulling the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a regional trade deal that Vietnam was a key part of, Trump has maintained strong ties with Hanoi.

In November, Trump visited Vietnam as part of his inaugural Asia trip aimed at reassuring allies that the US was still committed to the region, and in January, the US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also visited, laying the groundwork for this week’s visit by the USS Carl Vinson.

US message: We’re here to stay

In addition to Vietnam, the US is also tightening military cooperation with long-standing allies Australia, Japan and India.

The nomination of Adm. Harry Harris, the highest commander of US forces in Asia Pacific region, as US ambassador to Australia is expected to further enhance cooperation between Canberra and Washington in issues relating to the South China Sea.

US warships have visited Vietnam several times since November 2003, when a US frigate, the USS Vandegrift, made the first port call to the country since the Vietnam War ended. However, a visit by an aircraft carrier is of a different level and something that government officials in Beijing will be paying close attention to.

On Friday, a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman said that she hoped that the visit can “play a constructive role for the region instead of making the regional countries feel worried.”

Kirby said the carrier’s arrival in Vietnam sent a clear signal:

“It’s a message to Vietnam, about how much we care about that relationship, it’s a message to China, about what they’re doing in the region, but it’s also a broader message to everyone in the Pacific region, that the United States is here and we’re here to stay,” Kirby said.
The USS Carl Vinson enters Vietnam's Da Nang Port, becoming the first U.S. aircraft carrier to visit a Vietnamese port since the Vietnam War in 1975. The visit comes amid tensions in the region with China.