HANOI: China and Vietnam signed dozens of cooperation agreements on Monday (Apr 14), strengthening ties between the communist-run countries after Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned that protectionism “leads nowhere” and that a trade war would have “no winners”.
Xi is in Vietnam for the first leg of a Southeast Asia tour, as Beijing tries to present itself as a stable alternative to an erratic United States President Donald Trump, who announced – and then mostly paused – sweeping tariffs this month.
The Chinese president was welcomed to Hanoi on Monday with a 21-cannon salute, a guard of honour and rows of flag-waving children at the presidential palace, before holding talks with Vietnam’s top leaders, including General Secretary To Lam.
The two neighbours signed around 40 cooperation agreements. Details were not immediately available but prior to the visit it was expected that deals would be reached in areas including trade and aviation.
Xi’s visit comes almost two weeks after the US – manufacturing powerhouse Vietnam’s biggest export market in the first three months of the year – slapped a 46 per cent levy on Vietnamese goods as part of a global trade blitz.
Although the reciprocal tariffs on Vietnam and most other countries have been paused, China still faces enormous levies and is seeking to tighten regional trade ties and offset their impact during Xi’s first overseas trip of the year.
Xi is in Vietnam on Monday and Tuesday, before visiting Malaysia and Cambodia on a tour that “bears major importance” for the broader region, Beijing has said.
Speaking during a meeting with Lam on Monday, Xi said Vietnam and China were “standing at the turning point of history … and should move forward with joint hands”.
