Thayer Consultancy Bibliography

ABN # 65 648 097 123

Vietnam to Host Visit by USS
Carl Vinson (CVN 70)
February 18, 2018

We request your assessment of the significance of the USS Carl Vinson’s forthcoming
port call to Da Nang and how it anchors the comprehensive partnership between
Washington and Hanoi.
ASSESSMENT
The USS Carl Vinson will visit Da Nang from 5-9 March. This will be the first U.S. aircraft
carrier to dock at a port in Vietnam since visit of the auxiliary aircraft carrier USS Card
(ACV-11) that visited Saigon in May 1964. It was mined and sunk. Vietnamese media
describe the forthcoming visit of the USS Carl Vinson as “a dramatic sign of deepening
military ties between the two countries.”
U.S. aircraft carriers have transited the South China Sea and on occasion Vietnamese
officials have been flown out to observe carrier operations. For example, in 2009 the
USS John Stennis (CVN 74) hosted the first-ever “underway embark” of Vietnamese
officials. Another “underway embark” was conducted the following year when
Vietnamese officials were flown out to the USS George Washington (CVN 73). These
aircraft carriers were at sea and did not dock at a Vietnamese port.
Ever since the U.S. commenced annual port visits to Vietnam in 2009, they have
generally berthed at Tien Sa port, Da Nang city. This year, Vietnam and the U.S. had to
work out the feasibility of docking the USS Carl Vinson. Originally, Cam Ranh
International Port, as distinct from the Cam Ranh Bay military port, was considered. It
is unclear whether the USS Carl Vinson could have docked or would have had to anchor
in the bay. Da Nang appears to have been chosen because the carrier could dock. This
will enable some on shore community relations activities to be carried out such as
visits to a social welfare centre, mental illness support centre, SOS orphanage, Agent
Orange victims’ centre, Red Cross offices, and sporting activities. The schedule also
includes a fire safety exchange with Da Nang City Fire Department.
Before Vietnam revised its Law on the Sea in 2015, Vietnam required prior notification
of warships transiting its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The U.S. does not accept this
interpretation of international law and regularly sails through EEZs. Vietnam made no
protests when U.S. naval ships did so. In 2015, Vietnam revised the law and now
requests prior notification for navigational safety reasons. Such notification is not
mandarory.
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Vietnam takes the view that the U.S. naval presence in the South China Sea is welcome
as long as it contributes to regional peace and security.
The USS Carl Vinson’s visit is a sign that Vietnam continues to pursue defence
engagement with the United States at a cautious and steady state. In the past, U.S.
Navy guided missile destroyers visited Tien Sa port. The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier
is a potent symbol of maritime might. The USS Carl Vinson and its escort ships bring
more power to the South China Sea than the potential of all seven of China’s artificial
islands.
This past week (Wednesday, 14th February), Presidents Donald Trump and Tran Dai
Quang spoke by telephone and discussed regional security and defence relations.
Earlier this month, Ambassador Tina Kaidanow, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
of State for Politico-Military Affairs, U.S. Department of State, called on Vietnam to
distance itself from “traditional suppliers” (Russia) and diversify by “buying U.S.
equipment that would, one, give them more capability and, two, help strengthen our
partnership for the interoperability and the greater interaction with our military.”
Ambassador Kaidanow revealed that Vietnam recently purchased Boeing-Insitu
ScanEagle drones for maritime surveillance.
When President Trump received Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in the White
House in late May last year, the two issued a joint statement expressing their
agreement to expand their comprehensive partnership negotiated in 2013 uner the
Obama Administration. What we are witnessing with the port visit by the USS Carl
Vinson is a modest but significant step up in bilateral defence engagement.

Suggested citation: Carlyle A. Thayer, “Vietnam to Host Visit by USS Carl Vinson (CVN
70),” Thayer Consultancy Bibliography, February 18, 2018. All background briefs are
posted on Scribd.com (search for Thayer). To remove yourself from the mailing list
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Thayer Consultancy provides political analysis of current regional security issues and
other research support to selected clients. Thayer Consultancy was officially
registered as a small business in Australia in 2002.