На взгляд авторов, из-за обострения конкуренции между великими державами, которое может иметь серьезные последствия для Юго-Восточной Азии, нынешнее председательство Вьетнама становится поворотным моментом в истории АСЕАН. Осознавая существо проблем, с которыми сталкивается Ассоциация, вьетнамское председательство предлагает партнерам СРВ по АСЕАН и внешним игрокам повестку сотрудничества с отчетливой консолидирующей составляющей.

Новизна исследования проистекает из актуальности рассмотрения вероятных действий Вьетнама в качестве нынешнего председателя АСЕАН, в основе анализ связей между изменениями международной обстановки в Юго-Восточной Азии в период между 2010 и 2020 годами, ответными мерами АСЕАН их вьетнамской составляющей. В соответствии с такой аналитической парадигмой проводится детальная оценка приоритетов и направлений политики СРВ в период председательства в АСЕАН в 2020 году. Выводы по этим вопросам определяют практическую значимость и научную актуальность исследования.

Ключевые слова: Вьетнам, АСЕАН, Юго-Восточная Азия, АТР, ИТР, Южно-Китайское море, безопасность, сотрудничество.

The chapter examines the ASEAN direction in Vietnam’s foreign policy between its chairmanships in 2010 and 2020 respectively. The international changes that occurred during this period and influenced on ASEAN’s policy (the intensification of rivalry between the great powers, escalation of the South China Sea dispute, the growth of protectionism, restrictionism and nationalism, non-traditional security challenges including climate change, etc.), as well as its Vietnam’s dimension in forming ASEAN’s response, are thoroughly scrutinized. The SRV’s priorities during its 2020 chairmanship – both declared and practical – are studied in detail.

The authors argue that owing to increased competition between the great powers with potentially disturbing implications for Southeast Asia, the on-going Vietnam’s chairmanship becomes a crucial point in ASEAN’s history. Grasping the challenges, the association has to deal with, as the present ASEAN chairman Vietnam offers its ASEAN partners, as well the external powers, an agenda of cooperation with a clear consolidating component.

The novelty of the study stems from a cutting-edge research of Vietnam’s likely policy directions as the present ASEAN chairman, which is based on an analytical interlink between the changes of the international milieu in Southeast Asia between 2010 and 2020, ASEAN’s remedial measures and their Vietnam perspective. In line with this analytical focus, a deep and nuanced assessment of the SRV’s priorities and policy directions as the ASEAN’s 2020 chairmanship is made. Findings on this set of issues add the practical relevance of the study and make it academically unique.

Keywords: Vietnam, ASEAN, South East Asia, Asia Pacific, Indo-Pacific, South China Sea, security, cooperation.

The effective chairmanship in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is considered by the leadership of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV) as one of the main foreign policy tasks for 2020. The midterm review of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 and the 25th anniversary of Vietnam’s accession to the Association add urgency to this priority. The reputation aspect also matters – the election of Hanoi to the post of the nonpermanent member of the UN Security Council for 2020-2021 and the SRV’s chairmanship in ASEAN are convincing indicators of an increased role of the state on the regional and the global arena. To examine the ASEAN direction of Vietnam’s policy between the previous (in 2010) and the on-going SRV’s chairmanship in ASEAN becomes a timely and relevant exercise.