Rare and special: China and Vietnam bond by commonality and interest

Editor's note: Western media tries to paint China and Vietnam as mortal foes. But in truth, they are two neighbors with great commonality and shared interests. This video brings you an analysis of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Vietnam and the historic milestone reached.

This is a cycling race at the China-Vietnam border. Part of the track was in Hekou in China's Yunnan Province. Others were in Lao Cai in Vietnam. Over 600 cyclists and cycling enthusiasts participated in it.

If you look at how some of the Western international media describe the China-Vietnam relationship, you wouldn't think of anything like that happening.

They made it appear as if China and Vietnam were mortal enemies. The BBC was so sure of this, that it even opined that China and Vietnam would "certainly not talk about" "the bitter territorial dispute between them" during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the country.

Well, first of all, they did. Xi, also the general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, raised it in the meeting with Nguyen Phu Trong, the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee. He said that China and Vietnam should turn challenges posed by maritime issues into opportunities of bilateral cooperation. The two sides agreed to further strengthen border defense cooperation, continue to carry out joint patrols in the Beibu Gulf and mutual visits of warships, and deepen cooperation and exchange mechanisms between their navies and coast guards.

Second of all, no, they aren't mortal enemies.

Xiong Bo, Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam, said in an interview that "I must emphasize the unique nature of China-Vietnam relations. China and Vietnam are both socialist countries, led by the Communist Party, and friendly neighbors, connected by mountains and rivers. Bilateral relations, combining these elements, are rare in the world."

Cyclists shuttling across the border is a testament to this. From January to October this year, Chinese tourists have made more than 1.3 million trips to Vietnam. China is Vietnam's largest trading partner, and Vietnam is China's fourth largest. As Vietnam looks to modernize its country and spur economic growth, a key part of it would be cooperation with China.

Vu Minh Khuong, the assistant professor at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said that "China had done a great job in urbanization, especially developing their transit, their public transit in their every city. I think 47 cities in China had developed great metro system. And within two decades, that's amazing to see China have increased their links of metro system from a very small number to nearly 10,000 kilometers."

Vietnam's first urban light rail project was built by a Chinese company. It has served nearly 20 million passenger trips to date. During President Xi's visit, the two countries agreed to bolster the development of trans-border railways.

Senior lecturer at the University of the Philippines Richard Heydarian said that "we have seen, since last year, Vietnam making a really strategic decision that they have to maintain the best possible relationship with China because this is vital if not indispensable to their sustained economic development."

And it is vital if not indispensable to the stability and growth of the region. Vietnam is currently the fourth largest economy in the ASEAN countries. It is also the ASEAN country that trades with China the most. And China, while being the largest economy in Asia, is also ASEAN's largest trading partner. Both countries advocate for a multipolar international order and, in the face of recent conflicts, refused to blindly go along with the West's demands.

This new positioning, a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance, captures a relationship shaped by their commonality and interest. Put it simply: In the future, we hope more people and more than cyclists could also enjoy the scenery on both sides of the border.

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