Flying Blind: Vietnam’s Decision to Join ASEAN

This book discusses Vietnam’s relations with ASEAN in the period from the early 1970s to mid-1990s. It focuses on the evolution of Hanoi’s view on ASEAN, from denial to integration in the organization. Further, it reveals the reasons behind Hanoi’s decision to join ASEAN in 1995 in the context of the transformation of the overall Vietnam’s foreign policy when the Cold War ended. Relaxation of the Cold War conditions allowed Hanoi to improve understanding of ASEAN that resulted in better Vietnam-ASEAN relations and subsequent Vietnam’s membership in ASEAN. The author has had access to documents and interviewees that few other researchers can rival. And the richness of the empirical evidence of this book makes a significant contribution to the studies of Vietnam foreign relations in specific and Southeast Asian international relations in general. “This is a uniquely well-informed account of Vietnam’s serious internal debates leading to the decision to join ASEAN in 1995. The story starts with a probing analysis of Hanoi’s regional diplomacy and relations with the Soviet Union, China and the United States from the 1970s onward. Entering the 1990s, the narrative shows how Vietnamese policymakers struggled to reconcile ideological and pragmatic considerations as they navigated complex great-power and regional environments. Professor Tung dispels conventional balance-of-power explanations for Hanoi’s embrace of ASEAN, and argues persuasively that the decision to join grew out of a shift from a revolutionary national identity to an identity centred on developmental state model of the Southeast Asian type. This honest and close-up view of policy debates offers a rare opportunity for readers to understand the logic of policy-making in one of the world’s most complex diplomatic environments.”