TheAustraliaVietnam ComprehensivePartnership

CarlyleA.Thayer

PapertoBeyondEastWestDialogues: ImplicationsforResearchandKnowledgeProduction 3rdInternationalConferenceonEngagingwithVietnam cosponsoredbyMonashUniversity;InternationalStudiesDepartment, UniversityofSocialSciencesandHumanities,VietnamNational University;AustralianEmbassyVietnam;&VietnamAirlines Hanoi,December45,2011

TheAustraliaVietnamComprehensivePartnership
CarlyleA.Thayer1
ABSTRACT On September 7, 2009, Australia and Vietnam issued a joint statement in Canberra declaring theirbilateralrelationshipwasacomprehensivepartnership.Thisdeclarationwasgiveneffect ayearlaterwhenbothsidesagreedtoaPlanofActionfor201013.Thispaperprovidesabroad overviewofthethreepillarsthatconstitutethecomprehensivepartnershipbetweenVietnam andAustralia:(1)politicalandsecuritycooperation;(2)economiccooperation;and(3)people topeoplecooperation.Thepaperisdividedintothreesectionstoreflecteachofthesepillars. The first section discusses highlevel visits, bilateral regional security and human rights dialogues,defencecooperation,policeliaisontoaddresstransnationalcrimeandconsultations Thesecondsectionexaminestrade,investmentanddevelopmentcooperation.Thethirdsection discusses educational cooperation and provides a case study of a private academic initiative (WanderingSouls)toprovideinformationonthegravesofVietnamesesoldierskilledduringthe Vietnam War. The analysis in this paper concludes that the bilateral relationship is indeed a comprehensiveone.Australiaisamongthebiggestprovidersofprofessionalmilitaryeducation andtrainingtotheVietnamesearmedforces.Vietnamisthefastestgrowingtradepartnerfor AustraliaamongthetenASEANstates.AustraliaisVietnamsfourthlargestexportmarketand the seventeenth largest investor in Vietnam. Vietnamese constitute the largest international studentcommunityinAustralia.Thepaperconcludesbycanvassingfutureareasofcooperation.

BackgroundtotheComprehensivePartnership
Australia and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV or North Vietnam) were protagonistsduringtheVietnamWar.InFebruary1973,AustraliaandtheDRVformally established diplomatic relations after the signing of the Paris Peace Agreements (Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring the Peace in Vietnam) the previous month.TheParisagreementdidnotbringpeaceandtheVietnamWarcontinueduntil April30,1975withthefallofSaigon.Vietnamwasformallyreunifiedthefollowingyear underthenewnameSocialistRepublicofVietnam. WiththeexceptionoftheScandinaviancountries,Australiawasoneofthefirstwestern countriestorecognizetheDRV.TheWhitlamLaborGovernmentprovideddevelopment assistanceandscholarshipsforstudentstostudyinAustralia.2Relationssouredduring
1 2

EmeritusProfessor,SchoolofSocialSciencesandHumanities,TheUniversityofNewSouthWalesand theAustralianDefenceForceAcademy,Canberra.Contact:c.thayer@adfa.edu.au ForareviewofAustraliaVietnamrelationsduringthisperiodconsult:CarlyleA.Thayer,Australiaand Vietnam: Trade, Investment and Aid, Paper presented to the 1st International Symposium on The CountriesofIndochinaandInternationalEconomicCooperation:PotentialitiesandProspects,organized by the Association of Soviet IndoSinologists and the International Centre for Scientific and Technical Information,Moscow,RussianFederation,April1317,1992andCarlyleA.Thayer,AvstraliiaiVetnam: torgovlia,investitsii,politika,inE.P.Glazunov,G.G.Kadymov,V.M.MazyrinandE.A.Fomicheva,eds., Strany Indokitaia v mezhdunarodnom ekonomicheskom sotrudnichestve: vozmozhnosti i perspektivy

4 the Cambodian conflict (197989) when, for the first time in Australias history, the government cancelled an aid program for political reasons and joined in the internationaltradeandaidboycottofVietnam.3 Bilateral relations picked up with the reelection of the Labor Government under Bob Hawke in 1983. Vietnams withdrawal of military forces from Cambodia in September 1989 set the stage for a comprehensive political settlement two year later. Australia played a major role as facilitator of a settlement of the Cambodian conflict under the leadership of Foreign Minister Gareth Evans. Australia quickly responded to these developmentsbyshoringupitseconomicrelationswithVietnam.Inthespaceofthree years three major agreements were signed: Trade and Economic Cooperation Agreement (1990), Agreement on Investment Promotion and Protection (1991) and a DoubleTaxationAgreement(1992).Developmentassistancewasrestoredontheeveof the signing of the Cambodian peace accords in Paris in October 1991. An Air Services Agreementwasreachedin1995andaConsularAgreementsignedin2003. In 2008 Vietnam and Australia celebrated the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations. This provides a convenient benchmark for the discussion that follows on the formal declaration of a comprehensive partnership the following year. The section below summarisestheaccomplishmentsinbilateralrelationsupto2008. Between 1991 and the end of 2008 Australia and Vietnam exchanged thirtytwo high levelofficialvisits.Thislistincludesthosewithministerialrankand/ormembersofthe VietnamCommunistPartyPolitburo.Tables1and2setoutthedetailsofthesevisits.Of noteisthefactthatthesedatarevealfourvisitsbyVietnamsprimeminister,twobythe partysecretarygeneralandonevisitbyVietnamsstatepresidenttoAustralia.Onlytwo AustralianprimeministersvisitedVietnaminthisperiod. In addition, Australia and Vietnam have conducted a regular series of exchanges between the Parliament and National Assembly including deputies and staffers. The AustraliansideoftheprogramisundertheauspicesoftheAustralianPoliticalExchange Council. For example, in 2011 Australia and Vietnam exchanged their 15th delegations representing the Parliament of Australia and National Assembly of Vietnam, respectively.ArecentAgreementofPartnershipbetweentheNationalAssemblyofViet NamandtheHouseofRepresentativesoftheParliamentofAustraliawilldevelopcloser contactsandlinkages

(Moskva: Mezhdunarodnyi Tsentr Nauchnotekhnicheskoi Informatsii i Assotsiatsiia Indokitaistov, 1993), 5663.

3

CarlyleA.Thayer,AustraliaandVietnam,19501980,PartII,FromConciliationtoCondemnation,1972 1980,DyasonHousePapers[AustralianInstituteofInternationalAffairs],6(3),March1980,512.

5 Table1HighLevelVietnameseVisitstoAustralia,19932008 YearofVisit
1993 1995 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2004 2005 2006 2007 2007

RankandNameofVisitor
PrimeMinisterVoVanKiet SecretaryGeneralDoMuoi PrimeMinisterPhanVanKhaiandMiniserofPlanningand InvestmentTranXuanGia DeputyPrimeMinisterNguyenManhCamandMinisterof SportHaQuangDu PolitburomemberTruongTanSangandMinisterforScience, TechnologyandtheEnvironmentChuTuanNha MinisterofEducationandTrainingNguyenMinhHien MinisterofForeignAffairsNguyenDyNien MinisterofNationalDefencePhamVanTra PrimeMinisterPhanVanKhai,MinisterofEducationand TrainingNguyenMinhHIen VicePresidentTruongMyHoaandMinisterofLabour, InvalidsandSocialAffairsNguyenThiHang MinisterofPlanningandInvestmentVoHongPhuc PresidentNguyenMinhTriet,DeputyPrimeMinisterand MinisterofForeignAffairs,PhamGiaKhiemandMinisterof IndustryandTrade,VuHuyHoang MinisterofPublicSecurityLeHongAnh DeputyPrimeMinisterandMinisterofEducationand TrainingNguyenThienNhan ChairmanoftheNationalAssemblyNguyenPhuTrong DeputyPrimeMinisterTruongVinhTrong PrimeMinisterNguyenTanDungandMinisterofTransport HoNghiaDung

2007 2008 2008 2008 2008

6 Table2HighLevelAustralianVisitstoVietnam,19942008 YearofVisit
1994 1999 2000 2001

RankandNameofVisitor
PrimeMinisterPaulKeating MinisterforJusticeandCustomsAmandaVanstone MinisterforForeignAffairsAlexanderDowner MinisterforForeignAffairsAlexanderDowner,MinisterforTrade MarkVale,MinisterforImmigrationandMulticulturalAffairs PhilipRuddock MinisterforFamilyandCommunityServicesAmandaVanstone MinisterforForeignAffairsAlexanderDowner,MinisterforTrade MarkVale,MinisterforFamilyandCommunityServicesAmanda Vanstone MinisterforImmigrationandMulticulturalAffairsAmanda VanstoneandMinisterforFamilyandCommunityServicesKay Patterson MinisterforDefenceRobertHillandMinisterforFamilyand CommunityServicesKayPatterson MinisterforVocationalandTechnicalEducationGaryHardgrave ParliamentarySecretary(Trade)DeAnneKelly MinisterforHealthandAgeingTonyAbbott TreasurerPeterCostello MinisterforSmallBusinessandTourismFranBailey PrimeMinisterJohnHoward,MinisterforForeignAffairs AlexanderDowner,MinisterforTradeWarrenTruss MinisterforForeignAffairsStephenSmith

2002 2003

2004

2005 2005 2006 2006 2006 2006 2006 2008

Tables1and2showthatbothcountrieshavepaidhighlevelpoliticalattentiontothe bilateral relationship and the AustraliaVietnam relationship developed depth in four mainareas:developmentassistance,educationandtraining,tradeandinvestment,and defenceandsecurity.

Development assistance. In the financial year 200607 Australia granted Vietnam

$81.5millioninoverseasdevelopmentassistance(ODA);thiswasraisedto$93.1million in 200708 and $100 million for 200809. During this period Vietnam was the fourth largest recipient of Australian aid and ranked among the top ten bilateral donors to Vietnam. Australias aid program aimed to reduce poverty and achieve sustainable economicandsocialdevelopment.VietnamalsobenefitedbyAustralianaidtoregional programs,nongovernmentalorganizationsandemergencyassistance. AustraliasVietnamCountryProgramStrategyfor200307settwomajorobjectives:(1) to contribute to broadbased economic growth by strengthening governance in institutions involved in developing a competitive market economy and (2) improving productivity and links to markets for the rural poor in the Mekong Delta and central coastal regions. A major symbol of Australias assistance was funding for the constructionoftheMyThuanbridgeintheMekongDeltathatwascompletedin2000. Valued at $91 million, this was the largest ODA project undertaken by Australia. This bridgecurrentlycarriesfivemillionvehiclesperyear. Development assistance gave priority to rural and agricultural development. Australia played an important role in water management, essential water delivery systems and support for agricultural research institutions. Other areas of development assistance include health, energy, anticorruption training and private sector peopletopeople projects. AustraliaprovidedfundstotheWorldBanksPovertyReductionSupportCreditprogram thatbenefitedVietnamsofficialeconomicreformprogram.Australiahasalsoprovided technicalsupporttoVietnamtoassistitinmeetingobligationsfollowingmembershipin theWorldTradeOrganizationinJanuary2007. AustraliaandVietnamhaveheldregularhumanrightstalkssince2002.The8throundof theAustraliaVietnamHumanRightsDialoguewasheldinCanberrainFebruary2011.In 2006 Australia initiated a new program of technical cooperation in human rights involvingAustralianinstitutionswithhumanrightsexpertiseandtheVietnamWomens Union, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Justice. Australia also sponsored a humanrightscourseattheeliteHoChiMinhPoliticalAcademyinHanoi.Manyofthese programsarefundedundertheHumanRightsSmallGrantsScheme.

Educationandtraining. Education and training comprised a key element in bilateral

relations. Australia provided scholarships for tertiary study under its Development ScholarshipandLeadershipAwardsprograms.Thescholarshipswerespecificallyaimed at education and training that met Vietnams development needs. About 150 Vietnamese students commenced study in Australia each year under the former program,and26scholarshipswereawardedannuallyunderthelatterprogram.In2008 anestimated700VietnamesewereongovernmentscholarshipsstudyinginAustralia.

8 In 2008 it was estimated that between 10,000 and 13,000 Vietnamese students were studyinginAustraliaatalllevelsandthatafurther10,000werestudyingatAustralian institutionsinVietnam.Theseweremainlyselffunded. InFebruary2008,DeputyPrimeMinisterandofMinisterofEducationJuliaGillardand Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Education and Training Nguyen Thien Nhan signedaMemorandumofUnderstandingonfurthercooperationineducation.

Tradeandinvestment.TwowaytradebetweenAustraliaandVietnamrosefromUS
$32.3millionin1990toUS$4.56billionin2007(A$6.9billion).Twowaytradereached $6billionin2009.AustraliaisVietnamsthirdlargestexportmarketandseventhlargest tradepartner.Vietnameseexportsinclude:oil(70%in200910),fish,furniture,fruitand nuts, footwear, crustaceans, machinery and transport equipment. Australia exports to Vietnaminclude:wheat,copper,aluminiumandferrouswasteandscrap. InJune2008,Australiainvestedin174projectsinVietnamwithacapitalizationvalued at US $1.01 billion. This number rose to 224 projects with disbursed Foreign Direct InvestmentofUS$224millionin2010.AsofApril2010,Australiaranked20thinoverall direct foreign investment in Vietnam. Major Australian companies doing business in Vietnam include Qantas/Jetstar;4 Santos (oil production sharing contract), BlueScope Steel(flatsteelmetalliccoatingandpainting);QBEInsurance;CommonwealthBankof Australia,ANZBank;andRMITUniversity.OthercompaniesworkinginVietnaminclude: BaulderstoneBilfingerBerger(PhuMybridge,Saigon);StrategicMarine(shipyard,Vung Tau),ArrowEnergy(productionsharingcontract,northernVietnam),andOriginEnergy Australia(LPGjointventure). Australia and Vietnam manage their economic relations through a Joint Trade and EconomicCooperationCommittee.Thecommitteeheldits9thmeetinginMelbournein June2010.

Defence and security. Australia and Vietnam inaugurated a senior level Regional
Security Dialogue in 1998 involving both civilian and defence offiicals. Formal defence
4

In2009twoJetstarPacificexecutiveswerepreventedfromleavingVietnamfortheirallegedroleinfuel hedginglosses.TheJetstarcasealsoinvolvedcomplaintsaboutitsbrandingpromptedbyVietnamAirlines concern over Jetstars inroads into Vietnam Airlines market share. In January 2011, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith called on Vietnam to speed up their investigation so the executives could return to Australia. Vietnam Airlines is now reported by be in negotiations to become a majority stakeholder in JetstarPacific.See:SteveCreedy,SmithurgesVietnamtosendAussieshome,TheAustralian,January 20,2010;DeutschePresseAgentur,VietnamordersJetstarPacificairlinetochangelogo,June30,2010; Matthew Sullivan, Secret cables shed light on Qantas pairs Vietnam release, The Sydney Morning Herald,July4,2011;MattOSullivan,QantasduorescuedfromVietnam,TheSydneyMorningHerald, July30,2010;BenBland,JetstarlooksforclosertieswithVietnamAirlines,FinancialTimes,October18, 2011; Andrew Cleary, Hanoi airline alliance set to give Qantas a lift, The Australian Financial Times, October 21, 2011; and Leithen Francis, Vietnam Airlines May Buy Majority Stake in Jetstar Pacific, AviationWeek,October25,2011.

9 relationswereestablishedinFebruary1999whenAustraliapostedaDefenceAttachto Hanoi.VietnamposteditsfirstDefenceAttachinCanberrainSeptember2000.Priorto 1999defencecontactswerequitelimitedandincludedtwovisitsbyadelegationfrom the Joint Services Staff College (1996 and 1998) and preliminary discussions on cooperationinantimalariaresearch. Since 1999, Australia and Vietnam regularly exchange highlevel military delegations such as service chiefs, Royal Australian Navy (RAN) warships make regular visits to Vietnamese ports (see Table 3), and Australia has become a major provider of professionalmilitaryeducationandtrainingtoofficersfromtheVietnamPeoplesArmy throughitsDefenceCooperationProgram(DCP). Table3AustralianNavyShipVisitstoVietnam,199920085 Year 4/1999 5/2000 9/2002 7/2003 Ships HMASPerthandHMASArunta HMASANZAC HMASAdelaide HMASSuccess Port HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity DaNang DaNang HoChiMinhcity HoChiMinhcity

10/2003 HMASTobrukandHMASArunta 5/2004 9/2006 4/2007 8/2008 9/2009 HMASDiamantinaandHMASHuon HMASNewcastle HMASSuccess HMASANZAC HMASDarwin

ThefirstAustraliaVietnamDefenceCooperation(DC)talkswereheldinHanoiinApril 2001andconveneannually.TheDCProgram(DCP)includesfundingforthetrainthe trainer program for Vietnamese English language military instructors,6 longterm professionaldevelopmentcoursesattheAustralianDefenceCollege,andtentotwelve
5

According to Colonel Stuart Dobbs, the Australian Defence Attach in Hanoi, 15 RAN ships made goodwillvisitstoVietnamsince1999.Table3recordsonly13withnovisitsenteredfor2001and2005.
6

TheAustralianEnglishLanguageCourseisconductedbyUnit871oftheVietnamPeoplesArmywhich has responsibility for Vietnams defence cooperation training programs. See: Nguyen Ngoc Hung, FriendshipthroughTraining,PeoplesArmyNewspaperOnline,February23,2009.

10 annual Defence Scholarships for higher studies in Australia. Areas of training include: Defence and Strategic Studies, Command and Staff Operations, Army General Officer training, Hydrographic Surveying, and postgraduate studies (engineering and informationtechnology).MobileTrainingTeamsvisitVietnamforshortperiods. AustraliaalsoprovidesfundingforVietnamesedefencepersonneltoattendanumberof seminars and shortcourses including: Defence Management seminars; RAN Seapower Centre conferences; Common Training, Tactics and Procedures seminar; Revolution in Military Affairs conference; Chief of Defence Force Regional Conference; Australian DefenceForceWarfareCentrePeacekeepingseminar;DefenceScienceandTechnology Organisation(DSTO)MineCountermeasuresconference;DefenceIntelligenceResearch and Analysis course; Standard Combat Survivability course; Civil Military Cooperation course, Maritime Air Surveillance course; Maritime Law and Security seminar; and Emergency Management seminar. By 2009 two hundred and fifteen Vietnamese defence personnel conducted training through Australias Defence International TrainingCentre. In 200405 Vietnam and Australia exchanged visits by their respective Defence Ministers. In April 2005, during the reciprocal visit to Vietnam by Defence Minister Senator Robert Hill, Australia pledged to continue funding expanded training for Vietnamesemilitaryofficersandnationaldefencestudents. InMarch2007,AustralianandVietnamagreedtointensifydefencecooperationduring the visit to Canberra by Deputy Minister for National Defence, Lt. Gen. Nguyen Huy Hieu.Otheraspectsofdefencecooperationincluderegularnavalportcalls(seeTable3) and highlevel visits by defence officials. For example, Lt. General David Hurley, then ViceChiefofDefenceForce,visitedVietnaminAugust2009todiscussexchangevisits andcooperationintraining,militarymedicalservices,counterterrorismandthesearch forsoldiersmissinginactionduringtheVietnamWar.7 InthetenyearperiodtheDCPhasbeenineffectover150VietnameseDefencestudents have studied in Australia, including sixty who attended Australian military colleges (AustralianCommandandStaffCollegeandtheseniorcourseattheCentreforDefence and Strategic Studies, for example).8 Among the sixty over 40 Vietnamese officers studied at Masters level at Australian universities. Australia also provided language training to 96 Vietnamese defence personnel in Vietnam during this same period. In
7

AustralianArmydelegationvisitsVietnam,VoiceofVietnamNews,August3,2009andHoptacgiua QDNDVietNamvaLucluongquocphongOxtraylia,QuanDoiNhanDan,August4,2009.Ontheeveof GeneralHurleysvisittheVietnameseannouncedtheyhadfoundtheremainsofthelasttwoAustralian soldierswhodiedduringtheVietnamWar.See:LasttwoAustraliansoldiers;remainsfoundinVietnam, VoiceofVietnamNews,August3,2009.

8

KevinRudd,AustraliaandVietnam:Partnersinshapingourregionforthe21 century,SpeechtoRMIT University,HoChiMinhCity,April13,2011.

st

11 summary, over the ten year period of the DCP approximately 1,000 Vietnam Peoples ArmyofficershavereceivedtraininginVietnamandAustraliacombined. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) maintains two Law Enforcement Liaison Offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, respectively. The AFP Commissioner accompanied the Minister for Justice and Customs, Senator Amanda Vanstone, to Vietnam in 1999 and made two further visits in 2001 and 2006. The AFP works with the Ministry of Public Security,interalia,oncombatinghumantraffickinganddrugsmuggling. The above section provided a brief overview of the major components of Australias bilateral relationship with Vietnam up to 2008. This paper will now turn to the contemporary period and focus on the AustraliaVietnam Comprehensive Partnership announcedin2009.

AustraliaVietnamComprehensivePartnership
As the above discussion has illustrated, bilateral relations between Australia and Vietnamhavedevelopedconsiderablebreadthanddepthparticularlyinthedecadeof the 1990s after the resolution of the Cambodian conflict. Sometime in 2008 Vietnam reportedly approached Australia and suggested they formally raise their bilateral relationshiptostrategicpartners.Thetermstrategicpartnerswasusedincreasingly by Vietnam to designate countries with whom it had a close and comprehensive relationship, such as Russia, India, China and Japan. Reportedly Prime Minister Kevin Rudd rejected the term strategic partners as inappropriate for two reasons. First, Rudd did not favour a term that was merely symbolic but wanted it to have practical connotations. Second, Rudd felt that the term strategic should be reserved for close allies,suchastheUnitedStates.9 In the end Australia and Vietnam agreed to a comprehensive partnership. This was announced during the visit of Vietnam Communist Party Secretary General Nong Duc ManhtoCanberrain September2009.10Manhsvisitstandsincontrasttothatofhis predecessorSecretaryGeneralDoMuoiwhovisitedCanberrain1995.Atthattimethe Opposition boycotted his visit. The welcoming dinner was held in the small members dining room upstairs in Parliament House. Manh was given red carpet treatment includinga19gunsaluteonarrival.HemetwiththeGovernorGeneralandwasgivena lavish dinner in the Great Hall at Parliament House. He was welcomed by the Prime MinisterandLeaderoftheOpposition. During Secretary General Manhs visit, on September 7, Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillardand Deputy PrimeMinister PhamGiaKhiem signeda jointstatement declaring
9 10

UcVietthucdayquanhedoitac,BBCVietnamese,September7,2009.

Secretary General Manh was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, MinisterofPlanningandInvestment,andtheMinisterofIndustryandTrade.

12 theirbilateralrelationstobeaComprehensivePartnership.11Thisstatementhighlighted six major areas of cooperation: political ties and public policy exchanges; economic growth and trade development; development assistance and technical cooperation; defenceandsecurityties;peopletopeoplelinks;andglobalandregionalagenda.The joint statement indicated that this declaration would be followed up with an Action Plan. OnDecember17,2009,PrimeMinisterNguyenTanDungmetwithPrimeMinisterKevin Rudd in Copenhagen. During their conversation Dung suggested that Vietnam and Australia should formulate a program of action to implement the joint statement on comprehensivepartnership.Ruddagreedthatbothshouldworkhardonaprogramof action so it could be signed in 2010. The Plan of Action to realize the Comprehensive Partnershipfortheyears201013wasagreedinOctober2010. AccordingtoRudd,theAustraliaVietnamComprehensivePartnershipwascomposedof three pillars: political and security cooperation; economic cooperation; and peopleto peoplecooperationthroughthegreatbridgeofeducation.12Thesectionsbelowwill discusseachofthesethreepillarsinturn.

PoliticalandSecurityCooperation
The first pillar of the AustraliaVietnam Comprehensive Partnership is political and securitycooperation.Thiscooperationtakesplacebilaterallyandmultilaterallythrough consultations at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ASEAN Regional Forum or ARF), the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus (ADMM Plus),theEastAsiaSummitandotherorganizations. Highlevel visits. As noted in the first section above, Australia and Vietnam have accorded priority to their bilateral relations by exchanging highlevel visits by governmentleaders.AfterthejointstatementonComprehensivePartnership,Australia receivedthefollowinghighleveldelegationsfromVietnam:MinisterofLabour,Invalids andSocialAffairsNguyenThiKimNgan,MinisterofPlanningandInvestmentVoHong PhucandViceChairmanofVietnamsNationalAssemblyUongChuLuu. Since 2008 (see Table 2), highlevel Australian visitors to Vietnam have included: MinisterforImmigrationandCitizenshipChrisEvans(January2009),MinisterforTrade SimonCrean(July2009),formerPrimeMinisterPaulKeating(July2010),13Ministerfor
11

AustraliaViet Nam Comprehensive partnership, September http://www.dfat.gov.au/geo/vietnam/comprehensive_partnership_vietnam.html.

12 st

7,

2009.

Kevin Rudd, Australia and Vietnam: Partners in shaping our region for the 21 century, Speech to RMITUniversity,HoChiMinhCity,April13,2011.
13

When Keating met with Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Dung asked Keating to encourage the Australian government to fund the construction of the Cao Lanh bridge and to support the Thanh Long RoyalCitadelasaUNESCOheritagesite.

13 Defence Stephen Smith (October 2010), Prime Minister Julia Gillard (2010 East Asia Summit), Minister for Foreign Affairs Kevin Rudd (April 2011), and Governor General QuentinBryceAC(May2011). Dialogue and cooperation mechanisms. Australia and Vietnam conduct their political securitycooperationthroughseveralbilateralmechanisms.Defenceandsecurityissues, for example, are discussed at a regular regional security dialogue held since 1998. In December 2009, when Prime Minister Rudd met with Prime Minister Dung in Copenhagen, Rudd suggested upgrading their existing dialogue by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) setting up a dialogue mechanism for national defenceandsecurity. InOctober2010,theDefenceMinistersfromAustraliaandVietnam,StephenSmithand GeneralPhungQuangThanh,signedanMOUonDefenceCooperationinHanoionthe eve of the inaugural ADMM Plus meeting. The MOU provides a framework for enhanced practical cooperation between Australia and Vietnam in areas including strategic level policy dialogue, military training and exercises, and humanitarian assistanceanddisasterrelief.14 Humanrightsdialogue.AustraliaandVietnaminteractonhumanrightsissues.Australia initiatedatechnicalcooperationprogramin2006.Undertheauspicesofthisprogram AusAID has organized seminars and training courses on human rights issues for Vietnamese departments and organizations and opened links between relevant agencies of the two governments. In December 2010, for example, AusAID and Vietnams Ministry of Foreign Affairs sponsored a joint seminar on international conventionsonhumanrightsandimplementationmechanismsinHanoi.Australiaalso has assisted in issuing and revising several laws relating to the protection of human rights. In February 2011 Australia and Vietnam conducted their 7th bilateral human rights dialogue.Australiaremainsconcernedattheimprisonmentofpeopleforthepeaceful expression of heir political, religious or other beliefs and has communicated these concernstotheVietnamesegovernmentatthisdialogue.15

14

AustraliaandVietnamdeepenDefenceCooperation,MinisterforDefence,MediaReleaseMR12/10, October11,2010andNgocHung,AustraliaandVietnamsignMoUonDefenceCooperation,Peoples ArmyNewspaperOnline,October12,2010.

15

In October 2010 an Australian citizen, Hong Vo, was arrested for joining an antiChina protest in Vietnam.Shewasreleasedtendaylater.Mrs.VowasamemberoftheprodemocracyVietnamReform Party(VietTan)whichVietnamesemediacharacterizeasaterroristorganization.Aussiearrested,The Adelaide Advertiser, October 12, 2010; Deutsche Presse Agentur, Vietnam charges Australian woman with terrorism, October 14, 2010; Helen Clark, Consular visit for arrested Australian, Australian Associated Press, October 16, 2010; Deutsche Presse Agentur, Vietnam releases Australian woman for protestingagainstChina,October21,2010.

14 Securityandjudicialcooperation.TheAustralianFederalPoliceandVietnamsMinistry of Public Security (MPS) began cooperation to address border security, transnational crimeandnontraditionalsecurityissuesunderMOUssignedin2006andAugust2009 (exchangeofimmigrationinformation).16OnMarch30,2010ajointTransnationalCrime CentreopenedinHoChiMinhCity.ThisCentrewillprocessinformationonterrorism, illegal drugs, money laundering, human trafficking, smuggling and child sex tourism. Under the 2009 MOU the AFP and MPS will increase cooperation on border security through liaison between their respective customs departments and between the AFP andVietnamsborderguardsandseapolice(VietNamCanhSatBien). In September 2009, the Chief Justice of the Federal Court of Australia Michel Black visitedHanoitomeetwiththeChiefJudgeofSupremePeoplesCourt,TruongHoaBinh. TheysignedanMOUjuridicalcooperation.AustraliaisassistingVietnamindevelopinga judgeshandbook. Consultationsinregionalmultilateralinstitutions.AustralianandVietnamesediplomatic officials consult and cooperate in a number of international organizations and multilateralinstitutionssuchastheUnitedNations,AsiaPacificEconomicCooperation (APEC),ASEANRegionalForum,ADMMPlus,AsiaEuropeMeetingprocess(ASEM)and the East Asia Summit.17 Bilateral cooperation addresses a number of issues including: environmental protection, climate change, prevention of natural disasters and pandemics, counterterrorism, disarmanent and nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction,transnationalcrimeincludingpeoplesmuggling. Both countries have given diplomatic support to each other. For example, Vietnam supported and assisted Vietnam in its application for membership in the World Trade Organisation and nonpermanent membership on the United Nations Security Council (200809term).Australiaiscurrentlyassistinginnegotiationsinvolvingmembershipin theTransPacificStrategicandEconomicPartnership(orTPPforshort). Vietnam has provided diplomatic support for Australia in its dealings with ASEAN, particularlyduringtheperiodwhenMahathirwasPrimeMinisterofMalaysia.Vietnam supported Vietnams inclusion in the East Asia Summit (along with India and New Zealand) and Australias inclusion in the ASEM process. Vietnam also gave diplomatic support to Kevin Rudds AsiaPacific C/community initiative. And, in reciprocation, Vietnam has agreed to support Australias bid for nonpermanent membership on the UNSecurityCouncilfor201314.
16

The MOU was signed by the AFP and the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship and relevant agencies of the Vietnamese government, presumably police, customs, immigration, border contro/guards,andsecurityandintelligenceofficials.
17

ThefutureoftheEastAsiaSummit,includingexpandedmembershiptoincludetheRussianFederation and the United States, featured when Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd visited Hanoi in April 2011 for discussionswithhisVietnamesecounterpart,PhamGiaKhiem.

15

EconomicCooperation
Economic cooperation constitutes the second pillar of the AustraliaVietnam Comprehensive Partnership. The AustraliaVietnam Joint Trade and Economic CooperationCommitteeistheformalintergovernmentalbodythatconsiderstradeand investmentcooperation.Thissectionbrieflyreviewsthreeareasofcooperation:trade, investmentanddevelopmentcooperation. Trade. According to Graeme Swift, Australian Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City, VietnamisnowoneofAustraliasmostimportantandvaluedtradepartnersintheAsia Pacific region.18 In the last five years Vietnam has been Australias fastest growing trading partner in ASEAN. Currently Australia is Vietnams seventh largest trading partner and fourth biggest export market. Bilateral trade is expected to increase as a result of Vietnams quick ratification of the ASEANAustraliaNew Zealand Free Trade Agreement(AANZFTA)whichcameintoforceonJanuary1,2010.19 AustraliaandVietnammanagetheirtraderelationsthroughtheAustraliaVietnamJoint TradeandEconomicCooperationCommittee.Its9thmeetingwasheldinMelbourneon June 25, 2010 and was chaired by Minister for Trade Simon Crean and Minister for PlanningandInvestmentVoHongPhuc.Thismeetingtooknoteoftheencouragingfive year trend in the growth of twoway trade in goods and services, despite a decline in goods trade in 2009. This meeting identified four key areas of potential growth: educationandtraining,infrastructure,resourcesandenvironment. Tradeissueshavefeaturedprominentlyinhighlevelmeetingssincetheannouncement oftheComprehensivePartnership.Forexample,ForeignMinisterKevinRudddiscussed waystoboosttradeundertheAANZFTAwhenhemethiscounterpart,PhamGiaKhiem in Hanoi in April 2011. The following month senior Vietnamese leaders raised trade issues with GovernorGeneral Quentin Bryce when she visited Hanoi. On May 9, President Nguyen Minh Triet suggested that Australia and Vietnam should boost the importofseafoodandfarmproducefromeachotherandtapAANZFTAtoraisetrade and investment. When Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung suggested to the Governor General that both sides should step up economic, trade and investment cooperation, GovernorGeneral Bryce replied that Vietnam should create better conditions for AustralianbusinessestomakelongterminvestmentsinVietnam. CurrentlyAustraliaisworkingwithVietnamregardingmembershipintheTransPacific Partnership,aninenationgroupingforfreetradeareainAsiaPacific.

18

Graeme Swift quoted in Tuong Thuy, Aussie representative: It was a busy year to cement bilateral relations,SaigonGiaiPhongEnglishEdition,January28,2011.
19

ASEANAustraliaNew Zealand http://www.dfat.gov.au/fta/aanzfta/index.html.

Free

Trade

Agreement,

16 Investment. Australia currently ranks as Vietnams 17th largest foreign investor. Both sidesareexploringhowtoraiseinvestmentundertheAANZFTA.PresidentNguyenMinh Triet told GovernorGeneral Quentin Bryce during her visit in May 2011 that Vietnam wasexpectinganincreaseinAustralianinvestmentinoilandgas,mining, andcoal.In May,theAustralianMiningMission,comprisingtencompanies,madeitssecondvisitto Vietnamtoexploreinvestmentprospects.ThefirstMissionvisitedin2009. Development cooperation. Australia is Vietnams sixth largest development assistance donorandranksamongthetoptenbilateraldonorsofthethirtydonorcountriesand agencies working in Vietnam. Australias ODA to Vietnam has increased over the last threeyearsfrom$106million(200910)to$127.4million(201011),to$137.9million (201112).Thissectionreviewsmajordevelopmentsincethedeclarationofthebilateral ComprehensivePartnership. UndoubtedlyAustraliasdecisiontofinanceconstructionoftheCaoLanhbridge,Dong Thap province, in the Mekong Delta is one of the most important developments. The CaoLanhbridgeispartoftheCentralMekongDeltaConnectivityprojecttodevelopa new road infrastructure to provide market access in this region to five million people. Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd estimated that both the My Thuan and Cao Lanh bridges willbenefitnearlyninemillionpersons. OnDecember17,2009,PrimeMinisterNguyenTanDungmetwithPrimeMinisterKevin RuddinCopenhagenandurgedAustraliatofinanceCaoLanhbridge.Ruddrepliedthat Australiawouldinitiallyfundthedesignphaseofthebridgesubjecttoafeasibilitystudy bytheAsianDevelopmentBank(ADB).RuddalsostatedthatAustraliawasinterestedin constructing the bridge and would discuss funding with the ADB. After due consideration Australia decided to go ahead with the project. In October 2010, Prime MinisterJuliaGillard,whileinHanoi,officiallyannouncedthatAustraliawouldprovide $160milliontowardsthedesignandconstructionoftheCaoLanhbridge.Workwasdue to commence in 2012. The Cao Lanh bridge ranks as Australias biggest aid project in Vietnam. The second major development after the Comprehensive Partnership was announced, has been Australias increased support to Vietnam to address environmental and climatechangeissues.AustraliahasbeenassistingVietnaminenvironmentalprotection and climate change adaptation including training personnel and organizing workshops on hydrometeorology and climate change issues. Additionally, Australia has provided fundstotheCentreforInternationalAgriculturalResearchtoconductresearchonrice strains that can tolerate salty conditions likely to accompany sea level rise in Mekong Delta OnDecember17,2009,PrimeMinistersNguyenTanDungandKevinRuddagreedata meetinginCopenhagentocooperateintheexchangeofweatherforecastingtechnology and provide results of research into climate change in the AsiaPacific. As Foreign

17 Minister Rudd called for enhanced cooperation with Vietnam in dealing with natural disastersandclimatechangeduringhisvisitinApril2011. These declarations took concrete form when Australia and Germany agreed in March 2010 to team up to provide Vietnam with assistance to manage environmental problems arising from climate change. On June 3, 2011, AusAID announced it would provideUS$24.3milliontocontinuefundingtheClimateChangeinCoastalEcosystems Program. This program is being carried out in An Giang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau, Kien Giang and Soc Trang provinces. The new funding will be provided over five years to assist these provinces in managing and protecting coastal ecosystems to cope with climate change by restoring mangrove forests, protecting coastal forests, managing sea dykes andadoptingnewfarmingmethods.20 Australian assistance in meeting public health needs also featured in this period. GovernorGeneralQuentinBryceannouncedduringherMay2011visittoVietnamthat AustraliawillcontinuetoprovideassistanceinthefightagainstHIV/AIDS.Australiaisco chairofAmbassadors/UNHeadsofAgencyInformalHIVCoordinationGroup. Australias ODA program covers a wide variety of areas. The list below is indicative of therangeofprojectsandprogramsthatbenefitfromAustralianfunding: VietnamAustralia Agricultural Cooperation Program aimed at strengthening Vietnamssanitaryandphytosanitarycapacity. AfiveyearagreementsignedonJanuary13,2011betweentheStateAuditOfficeof VietnamandSocietyofCertifiedPractisingAccountantsofAustralia(CPAAustralia) to exchange experience and information via seminars, workshops and professional networkexpansionandstafftrainingcoursesinAustralia. Australian support for Vietnams trade reform agenda through provision of trade policytraining. Australian support for administrative reform and good governance training programsincludinganticorruption. Australiancooperationinpublichealthandagricultureresearch. Australianfundingtobuildroads,irrigation,electricityschemes,healthcentresand culturalhouses.

20

VoiceofVietnam,June3,2011.

18

PeopletoPeopleCooperation
Peopletopeople cooperation constitutes the third pillar of the AustraliaVietnam Comprehensive Partnership. Kevin Rudd correctly emphasized the importance of the greatbridgeofeducationasthecentrepieceofpeopletopeoplecooperation. Before turning to this aspect it is important to note the informal everyday interaction between Australia and Vietnam. Vietnam is home to 188,000 Vietnamese. Each year between 210,000 and 300,000 Australians visit Vietnam. As noted by the two governments, [t]hese [peopletopeople] links exist across all levels of society and acrossabroadspreadofbusiness,academic,media,cultural,nongovernmentagencies, friendlyandsportingorganizations.21 Educational cooperation. Education and training represents Australias largest services exporttoVietnam.Itisestimatedthattherearecurrently13,000Vietnamesestudents undertakingAustralianeducationandtrainingcoursesinVietnam. In 2001, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) was the first foreign university to be established in Vietnam. It has graduated 2,500 students over the last decade. In October 2010 RMIT opened a new campus in Hanoi, while in April 2011 expandedcampusfacilitiesfor6,000studentswereopenedinHoChiMinhCity. In addition, it is estimated that 26,000 Vietnamese students are currently enrolled in schools, technical colleges, English education and universities in Australia. They are overwhelminglyselffunded.TheVietnamesegovernmentprovides100scholarshipsfor study in Australia. Vietnamese students make up largest international student communityinAustralia. AtthesametimeAustraliaisthelargestproviderofscholarshipstoVietnamworldwide. Each year several hundred higher education scholarships are provided for high performingVietnamesestudentstostudyinAustraliaundertheAustraliaAsiaAwards.22 In 2010, Vietnamese won three of the Prime Ministers ten Australia Asia Endeavour Awardsforstudy,researchandprofessionaltraininginAustralia.In201112,Australia madeavailableupto400scholarshipsforapplicantsfromVietnam. As a result of the signing of the AustraliaVietnam Plan of Action (201013), a Joint Working Group on Education and Training was set up to enhance education cooperation.IthelditsfirstmeetinginCanberrainMarch2011.Thefollowingmonth, Foreign Minister Rudd announced that Australia would increase the number of scholarships for university students undertaking PhD programs and officials to study
21 22

AustraliaVietNamComprehensivePartnership,September7,2009.

Sources vary, with figures ranging from 150 to 300 to 400 scholarships awarded annually. The BBC reportedonMay12,2011thatAustraliawillgrantVietnammorethan300graduateandpostgraduate scholarship in 201112. Of the winners, 48 Vietnamese scholars and professionals were selected to receivescholarshipsworth$6.7millionin2010.

19 management, international law and English. Nevertheless, Vietnam has pressed for moreeducationalassistance.InMay2011PresidentNguyenMinhTriettoldGovernor GeneralQuentinBrycethatVietnamwouldliketoseeAustraliaincreasescholarshipsfor Vietnamese students and create more favorable conditions for Vietnamese who are studyingandworkinginAustralia. There are numerous other forms of peopletopeople interaction that could be mentioned in this survey. For purpose of illustration two examples are discussed. The first concerns the role of private charities and nongovernment organizations, the secondconcernsaninitiativebytwoveteransoftheVietnamWar. In May 2011, the Governor General visited Thua ThienHue where the Fred Hollows Foundationisprovidingpubliceyecare.TheGovernorGeneralalsovisitedtheBeVan Dan Primary School in Da Nang where the Alliance for Safe Children and Royal Life SavingSocietyAustraliaaresponsoringaswimmingtrainingprogramforchildren.Two Australianmilitaryhistorians,BobHallandDerrilldeHeer(whoarealsoVietnamWar veterans)andothercollealgues,23havefounddocumentsinthefilesoftheDepartment ofDefencethathaveenabledthemtoidentifythenamesandburialsitesofmorethan 3,800communistsoldierskilledincombatagainstAustraliaduringtheVietnamWar.24 Using Australian records they have identified the names of more than 400 soldiers buriedatsitesinBaRiaVungTaoandDongNaiprovinces.Theyhaveinitiatedaproject to gather photographs, letters, official certificates and diaries that might have been takenfromthebodiestoassistinidentifyingtheremains.AustralianVietnamVeterans havebeenaskedtoassistbycomingforwardwithanysuchmaterialintheirpossession (www.vvaansw.org/VMIA.html).Thehistorianshavealsobeenincontactwithveterans of33rdRegiment,VietnamPeoplesArmy,whofoughtintheAustralianArmysareaof responsibility(particularlyatthebattleofBinhBaonJune67,1969).TheVietnamese keptmeticulousrecordsandhavehandedoverthenamesoftheirwardeadanddate andplaceofengagement.Bycombiningthisinformationwithinformationcontainedin Australian war diaries the historians have been able to determine where the Vietnamese are buried and thus assist Vietnam in the recovery of its own wartime missinginaction.TheentireprojecthasbeennamedOperationWanderingSoul.
23

HallanddeHeerareattachedtotheSchoolofHumanitiesandSocialScience,TheUniversityofNew SouthWalesattheAustralianDefenceForceAcademy,Canberra.
24

Mark Dodd, Tool to help uncover Vietnams war dead, The Australian, March 5, 2010; Australian veteranshelpVietnamfinditswardead,ThanhNienNews,March13,2010;MarkDodd,Vietnamvets find wandering souls, The Australian, July 20, 2010; Australian vets create virtual map of Vietnams wanderingsouls,ThanhNienNews,August13,2010;DavidEllery,SearchgoesonforVietnamsMIAs, TheCanberraTimes,January192011;TomHyland,Diggersofferpeaceatlastforwanderingsouls,The SydneyMorningHerald,April24,2011;TomHyland,Peaceatlastforsoulslostinwar,TheSundayAge, April24,2011;andOneGoodTurn,VietnamVeteransPeacekeepers&Peacemakers:OfficialJournal oftheVietnamVeteransFederationofAustralia,September2001,2021.

20 Peopletopeople links continue to be affected by legacies of the Vietnam War. When theAustralianveteransorganizationReturnedandServicesLeague(betterknownasthe RSL)attemptedtonegotiateaMOUwiththeVietnamVeteransAssociationtopromote rapprochement this provoked a backlash among some veterans including the Vietnam VeteransAssociationofAustraliaandtheVietnameseCommunityinAustralia.TheRSL droppeditsproposal.25

Conclusion
The analysis in this paper demonstrates that bilateral relations between Australia and Vietnam had developed breadth and depth during the period 1991 to 2008. In particular, the paper traced the development of bilateral relations in five main areas: political, development assistance, education and training, trade and investment, and defencesecurity. Close political relations were demonstrated by the density and importanceofhighlevelleadershipvisits.Vietnamranksfourthamongtherecipientsof Australian overseas development assistance. Australia emerged as one of the major providersofeducationandtrainingservicestoVietnam,whileVietnamesestudentsin Australiaconstitutethelargestinternationalstudentcommunity.Intermsofeconomics, VietnamemergedasAustraliasfastestgrowingtradepartneramongtheASEANstates. Finally,Australiarankedamongthetopprovidersofprofessionalmilitaryeducationand trainingtotheVietnamesemilitary. ThedecisiontoformaComprehensivePartnershipwasapoliticalone.Itwasdesigned togiverecognitiontowhathadbecomeinfactacomprehensivebilateralrelationship. The joint statement on Comprehensive Partnership provides a framework for the management and prioritizing of bilateral relations. According to the then Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, the Comprehensive Partnership was based on three pillars: politicalsecurity;economiccooperation;andpeopletopeoplewitheducationaskey. Withinayearofsigning,AustraliaandVietnamagreedtoaPlanofActioncoveringthe period2010to2013.Sixmajorareasofcooperationweresetout: politicalandpublic policy;economicgrowthandtradedevelopment;developmentassistanceandtechnical cooperation; defence and security; peopletopeople links; and global and regional agenda. ThetextofthejointAustraliaVietnamPlanofActionhasnotbeenmadepublic.From the public record, however, it is clear what some of the Vietnamese priorities are. On December 17, 2009, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung met with Prime Minister Kevin
25

Ian McPhedran, Vietnam veteran fury over RSLs betrayal. The Daily Telegraph, October 18, 2011; SeanNicholls,RSLplanoutragesVietnamveterans,TheSydneyMorningHerald,October18,2011;Mark Dodd, Digger fury forces RSL to retreat on Vietnam, The Weekend Australian, October 22023, 2011; RSL abandons Vietnam agreement, The Sydney Morning Herald, October 26, 2011; and Vietnam Australia veterans link dumped. Australia Network News, ABC Asia Pacific News Centre, October 26, 2011.

21 Rudd in Copenhagen and suggested expanding cooperation in vocational training and finance. In May 2011, during the visit of GovernorGeneral Quentin Bryce to Hanoi, President Nguyen Minh Triet suggested stepped up cooperation in national defence, security, extradition of criminals, natural disaster control, education, and science. NguyenPhuTrong,ChairmanoftheNationalAssemblyStandingCommittee,pressedfor stepped up cooperation in legislative relations, cultural and sports cooperation, and further cooperative ties between governments, ministries and sectors. When the GovernorGeneral met Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung both were in agreement that each side needed to actively implement the Plan of Action 201013 if the ComprehensivePartnershipwastoreachitsfullpotential. WhatareAustraliaspriorities? 1.Thepoliticalrelationshipwillfocusmoreonpublicpolicyandgovernanceissues.The JointStatementonComprehensivePartnershipdeclared:
Exchanges on economic planning including public finance, budget management, economic reform and taxation, investment policy, competition policy and infrastructure as well as policy dialogue in areas of HIV/AIDS, education, science and technology management, gender equality, social welfare and services, especially for women and children, will assist closer cooperation and will help contributetostrengtheninggrowthinkeysectors.

Specifically,AustraliacommitteditselftoassistingVietnam(1)indevelopingappropriate policy on the management of foreign workers in Vietnam and the management of foreign workers migrating to Vietnam (2) addressing educational management and vocationaltrainingneedsandcapacityand(3)counteringcorruptionbypartyandstate officials. 2.Economiccooperationwillfocusincreasinglyontransparency,competitiveness,trade liberalization and the implementation of obligations under the ASEANAustraliaNew ZealandFreeTradeAreaandWorldTradeOrganisation. Specifically,Australiawillpressforincreasedtradeandinvestmentinthefollowingkey sectors: infrastructure and urban development; mining and energy; manufacturing; agriculture;andfinancial,andeducationalservices. 3. New priorities in development assistance and technical cooperation will include natural resources management, human resource development, clean and renewable energy,collaborationinscienceandtechnology,andradiationandnuclearsafety. 4.Australianprioritiesindefenceandsecuritywillinclude:cooperationindevelopinga credible regional security architecture; increased cooperation by a range of relevant agencies to address transnational crime (human trafficking and people smuggling, narcotics, money laundering), counterterrorism, maritime and aviation security (anti piracy)andcounterproliferationofweaponsofmassdestruction(WMD).

22 Specifically,Australiawillpressforanearlyconclusionofanagreementonthetransfer ofsentencedpersonsandabilateraltreatyonextraditionandmutuallegalassistance. 5.UndertheheadingofpeopletopeoplelinksAustraliawillpromoteinitiativesto(1) enable a shortterm youth work and holiday arrangement and (b) improve consular services including the expansion of the Australian ConsulateGeneral in Ho Chi Minh City. Further peopletopeople links will be promoted in culture, sports, tourism and peopletopeoplediplomacy. Specifically, Australia will strengthen and expand the Australian Network television servicetoVietnamincludingtheuseofVietnameselanguagesubtitlesandtheprovision ofEnglishlanguageeducationmaterials. 6.Australianprioritiestoadvancetheglobalandregionalagendawillinvolveenlisting Vietnaminpromotingcollectiveactiontoaddresstheglobaleconomiccrisis(including reform of global financial institutions), climate change, WMD proliferation, natural disasters, pandemics, food security, and reform of the United Nations and the UN SecurityCouncil. RevisedDecember4,2011