HANOI/BOGOR, INDONESIA – Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said Monday that Japan will provide six patrol vessels to Vietnam as a part of a fresh yen loan offer totaling ¥120 billion to the Southeast Asian country to help its maritime safety efforts amid China’s expanding activities at sea.
The patrol vessels are aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation, Abe said at a news conference following talks with his Vietnamese counterpart,
Nguyen Xuan Phuc, in Hanoi, held at a time when uncertainty is looming over incoming U.S. President Donald Trump’s commitment to the stability of the Asia-Pacific region.
Vietnam is embroiled in a territorial row with China in the contested South China Sea, along with four other governments.
Although Japan is not a claimant in the South China Sea disputes, it remains concerned about China’s growing military presence in the busy shipping lane and is keen to maintain a rules-based order at sea.
Tokyo meanwhile is involved in a dispute with Beijing over the Japanese-controlled Senkaku Islands in the East China Sea that are claimed by China.
Vietnam is Abe’s last stop on a four-nation tour that also took him to the Philippines, Australia and Indonesia, which — along with Vietnam — have been key Asia-Pacific nations that Abe has sought to strengthen ties with amid China’s rise and uncertainties over Trump’s Asia policies.
Amid concerns about a shift to a protectionist U.S. trade policy under Trump, the leaders are likely to have discussed promoting free trade, including the U.S.-led Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, of which both countries are members, Japanese officials said.
RCEP is an Asia-Pacific mega-pact that — unlike the TPP — excludes the United States but includes China.
The outlook for the TPP is dim as Trump, who takes office Friday, has vowed to reject the agreement in its current form.
Nguyen Xuan Phuc is holding out hope that Trump will reconsider the TPP, noting that recent comments by officials who are set to take senior roles in Trump’s Cabinet give him reason to be optimistic.
“Many of the newly appointed members of the new Cabinet are in favor of the TPP, so I think that Washington might reconsider its decision because it will also benefit the U.S.,” he said.
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