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UAW members striking Oct. 25, 2019, outside the GM Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly plant in Detroit. With the United Auto Workers' labor contract with Detroit's Big Three automakers expiring at 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 14, 2023, labor negotiations remain turbulent.

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: LNG Strikes in Australia, Biden Visits Vietnam

Snapshots

Brunei Darussalam

Cambodia

China

Indonesia

Laos

Malaysia

Myanmar

Philippines

Singapore

Thailand

Regional leaders pose for a group photo before the ASEAN-Australia summit, held as part of the 43rd ASEAN summit in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Sept. 7, 2023. From left to right stand the Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Thailand's Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sarun Charoensuwan, Vietnam's Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Indonesia's President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, Laos' Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone, Brunei's Prime Minister Hassanal Bolkiah, Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet, Malaysia's Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and East Timor's Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao.

Military & Security

Politics

ASEAN's most recent summit underscored chronic passivity within the bloc that will only worsen in 2024. 

Amid ASEAN's Inaction, the Block's Members Look to External Partners for Security

U.S.-China Relations

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (left) shakes hands with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son before their meeting at the Government Guest House in Hanoi on April 15, 2023. 

Following Chinese vessels' recent incursion into Vietnamese waters, Hanoi appears to be warming up to the idea of elevating its partnership with Washington.

For Vietnam, Tensions With China Make the Case for Closer U.S. Ties

A bank employee checks currency notes at a branch of VPBank in Hanoi, Vietnam, on June 29, 2023. Vietnam's economic growth slowed in the first half of the year as exports were hit by a slump in demand, authorities said June 29.

Economics

Energy

After years of rapid growth, Vietnam's recent slowdown is revealing its economic and institutional shortcomings, which may bode ill for the country's long-term development.

Falling Exports and Rising Temperatures Bog Down Vietnam's Economy

Guatemala

Saudi Arabia

Pakistan

Employees of the Supreme Electoral Tribunal on June 20, 2023, arrange ballots in Guatemala City during preparations for the upcoming general elections.

The Weekly Rundown: Guatemala Holds General Elections, Pakistan's IMF Bailout Program Expires

Media

Taiwan

Graphics

Chinese maritime militia vessels float near the Philippine-controlled island of Thitu, which Filipinos call Pag-asa, in the contested Spratly Islands in the South China Sea on March 9, 2023.

Recent incidents in the South China Sea illustrate the competing interests of claimant states amid increasing militarization.

A Look at Recent Incidents in the South China Sea

A Chinese coast guard ship sails past anchored Philippine fishing boats in the Scarborough Shoal, in the disputed South China Sea, on Feb. 3, 2023.

A binding code of conduct in the South China Sea remains unlikely, despite the resumption of negotiations between claimant states.

With No Deal in Sight, South China Sea Claimants Continue to Militarize

Vietnam's new president Vo Van Thuong is sworn in during an extraordinary meeting in the National Assembly in Hanoi, Vietnam, on March 2, 2023. 

Thuong's appointment solidifies a power shift in Hanoi following his predecessor's forced exit, as General Secretary Trong tries to reorient the state bureaucracy under the auspices of the Communist Party.

What to Make of Vietnam's New President

Serbia

Kosovo

India

Officials stand near flags of participating countries and organizations at the venue where the second meeting of the G-20 Finance and Central Bank Deputies under India's G-20 presidency has begun Feb. 22, 2023, in Bengaluru, India.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: Serbian and Kosovar Leaders Meet, G-20 Meetings Reveal Divergent Global Priorities

Then-Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc arrives at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok, Thailand, on Nov. 18, 2022. 

Phuc’s resignation marks an escalation of the Communist Party’s anti-corruption campaign and portends the strengthening of national security elites.

Vietnam's President Is Forced Out. What Now? 

Senegal

South Africa

Zambia

Japan

South Korea

Germany

United Kingdom

Ukraine

Two Leopard 2A6 main battle tanks of the German armed forces participate in the NATO Iron Wolf military exercises on Oct. 27, 2022, in Pabrade, Lithuania. On Jan. 20, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group of military equipment donors to Ukraine will meet at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where a breakthrough is expected regarding the supply of German Leopard tanks to Ukraine. 

The Weekly Rundown: Germany Discusses Tanks for Ukraine, the Lunar New Year Approaches

A photo taken on Oct. 14, 2022, shows cranes picking up coal at a port of the Pha Lai thermal power plant in Vietnam's Hai Duong province. 

Environment, Science & Technology

Western countries are pouring billions of dollars into Vietnam's clean energy transition to mitigate the risk of the country relying on coal to meet its growing power demands.

The West Gives Vietnam's Climate Goals a Shot in the Arm -- And a Shot at Success

The United States and Vietnam upgraded relations to a first-tier "comprehensive strategic partnership," Reuters reported on Sept. 10.

Vietnam, U.S.: Upgraded Relations Bring Enhanced Business Ties

A Chinese coast guard vessel hit a Vietnamese fishing vessel with a water cannon on Aug. 28, breaking the arm of a fisherman, injuring several others and causing extensive damage to the vessel, Vietnamese state media Thanh Nien reported on Aug. 30.

China, Vietnam: Hanoi Broadcasts Water Cannon Incident Ahead of Biden Visit

Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang implored 28 coastal localities to confront illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing in their jurisdictions in line with the European Commission's recommendations, Bao Chinh Phu, the official Vietnamese government newspaper, reported on Aug. 30.

Vietnam: Hanoi Seeks Reduction in IUU Fishing to Forestall Economic Repercussions

Djibouti

Mongolia

Papua New Guinea

Japan is considering offering Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Mongolia and Djibouti security-focused aid under Tokyo's official security assistance (OSA) program, Asahi Shimbun reported on Aug. 28.

Japan: Tokyo Considers Six Countries to Receive Security Aid

Indonesia is tapping local fishers in the Natuna islands to watch for and report illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and incursions by foreign forces, Nikkei Asia reported on Aug. 18.

Indonesia: Jakarta Turns to Local Natuna Fishers for Maritime Security

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. revealed that the Philippines and Vietnam are negotiating the demarcation of their South China Sea maritime boundary, the Manila Bulletin reported on Aug. 10.

Philippines, Vietnam: Countries Negotiating Maritime Demarcation

U.S. President Joe Biden said he will visit Vietnam "soon" to lay the groundwork for elevating relations to a "strategic partnership," Reuters reported on Aug. 9.

Vietnam, U.S.: Biden Anticipates Upgrade in Relations

Vietnam intends to increase its production of rare earths to 2.02 million tons by 2030 and 2.11 million tons by 2050 from 4,300 tons in 2022 (and 400 tons in 2021), VnExpress reported on July 26.

Vietnam: Hanoi Looks to Unleash Rare Earths Reserves

Afghanistan

Algeria

Antigua and Barbuda

Luxembourg

South Sudan

A view of the Register in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Angola

Argentina

Armenia

Bahrain

Lithuania

Covering an area that spans the entire width of the continent beginning at the Sahara Desert and ending at the southernmost tip of South Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa is home to countless cultures, languages, religions, plants, animals and natural resources.

Barbados

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Egypt

Maldives

Malta

Belize

Botswana

Iran

North Macedonia

Tajikistan

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Bolivia

Burkina Faso

Iraq

The President palace in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

The administrative center of the Gakh region of Azerbaijan, located at the foot of the southern slope of the Greater Caucasus, on the river Kurhumchai.

Brazil

Burundi

Finland

Israel

Nepal

Cameroon

Canada

Georgia

Jordan

Mir Castle in the Minsk region of Belarus.

Cabo Verde

Chile

Federated States of Micronesia

Kuwait

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Sri Lanka

Central African Republic

Colombia

Fiji

Latvia

Lebanon

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Chad

Costa Rica

Libya

Russia

Comoros

Cuba

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A horse grazes in front of Kara-Kul lake in the Chon-Ak-Suu valley, 300 kilometers southeast of Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.

Morocco

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Dominican Republic

Palestinian Territories

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Qatar

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Equatorial Guinea

Greece

Marshall Islands

Eritrea

France

Grenada

Vietnam is located on the easternmost edge of the Indochinese Peninsula, with China to the north and Laos and Cambodia to the west. Its more than 2,000 mile-long coastline abuts the Gulf of Tonkin, the South China Sea and the Gulf of Thailand. These seas create both direct access to the wider Pacific Ocean and a critical buffer to Vietnam's long and narrow land territory.    Modern Vietnam consists of two geographic and population cores — the Red River Delta in the north, home to the capital of Hanoi, and the Mekong River Delta in the southern lowlands, where Ho Chi Minh City sits.  These cores are separated by over 1,600 miles and connected by a thin and largely mountainous coastal spine, only around 30 miles wide at its narrowest point.    Despite mountains and jungles, the northern Vietnamese core has a long history of invasion by forces from China. This almost continuous pressure from the north in part forced Vietnam's early rulers to expand the country's boundaries, first southward, to the Mekong River Delta, and then westward, into present day Laos and Cambodia.    Historically and today, the natural geographic separation of Vietnam's northern and southern cores has exacerbated the two regions' social, cultural and political divide — leaving the country vulnerable to invasion by foreign powers, whether Chinese, French or American.    Vietnam’s primary geographic challenge is to secure buffer space both on land and sea. Today, Vietnam's need for space and security in the South China Seas pits it against China, also in the throes of maritime expansion, thus adding a new dimension to Vietnam's longstanding struggle to carve space for itself against its larger northern neighbor.  

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SITUATION REPORTS

Vietnam, U.S.: Upgraded Relations Bring Enhanced Business Ties

China, Vietnam: Hanoi Broadcasts Water Cannon Incident Ahead of Biden Visit

Vietnam: Hanoi Seeks Reduction in IUU Fishing to Forestall Economic Repercussions

Japan: Tokyo Considers Six Countries to Receive Security Aid

Indonesia: Jakarta Turns to Local Natuna Fishers for Maritime Security

Philippines, Vietnam: Countries Negotiating Maritime Demarcation

Vietnam, U.S.: Biden Anticipates Upgrade in Relations

Vietnam: Hanoi Looks to Unleash Rare Earths Reserves

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