INTRODUCTION:

The international relations saw many shifts in the world system with the end of the Cold War when the Soviet Union finally collapsed. It brought growing complexities and highly dynamic nature of changing relations among the nations in the international affairs.

The United States became the sole surviving superpower enjoying a prominent voice in intellectual and policy discourse as it grew in power and influence. The erstwhile Soviet Union was dissolved and a Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) i.e. an association of nine new independent states was formed wherein Russia emerged as a successor state with limited yet power status. The post-Cold War also saw the rise of China as the center of global industrial growth with a dictate on progressive reform and liberalization policy. It generated a major offset on the part of the United States self-confidence of having no serious rival in a new international world system. Gradually, it created a complex and assumed competition relationship between the United States and China, where each was ready to play an increasing role in the competitive world economy. Kocharyan (2005) calls attention that the 21st century is gradually stepping towards power equilibrium, preventing any single country to maximize its power with a countervailing force of China at disposal to check the threat. The bleak view of the international system and the conjuncture to claim the unilateral privilege had other emerging challenges which were pernicious particularly in the event of the changing role of the nation-state and the system of interaction at all levels. The rising domestic political uncertainty in most states, the unfolding nuclear arms race and the proliferation of armed non-state actors with the use of new and conventional tactics have undermined the capabilities of the superpower in addressing these issues.

Narrowing it down to the regional setting, these changes had a profound influence in the Southeast Asia region. Marked by several devastating wars, including in Vietnam and Korea, insurgencies uprising and authoritarian regime, the region proved to be an ultimate testing ground for the big power after the Cold War phase. In fact, where the end of the Cold War brought a drastic transformation to most of the region around the globe with a new laissez-faire security community, it was less true in the Southeast Asia region. The presence of powerful communist rule, particularly in China, North Korea, Vietnam, and Laos, authoritarian rule in Myanmar, Thailand and North Korea significantly hindered the progress of the region. Moreover, the economic success experienced by the region has opened up the presence of the outside power like China, Korea, Japan and the United States, to play a crucial role by opening up its market to the region. This has further threatened the security of the region in the post-Cold War period wherein the economic growth and financial strength have toughened the security competition between the big powers.

Changing structure in Southeast Asia:

Historically know as Indo-China, Southeast Asia is a sub-region of Asia continent, comprising of the nations that lie to the east of India, West of Japan and South of China surrounded by water bodies of the Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Sea and the South China Sea. The region comprises of eleven countries with extraordinary diversity in religion, culture, and history. These include Myanmar, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Laos, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei. The significance of the region is heightened by the strategic location of the region that astride the sea passage between East Asia and the Middle East, making it one of the most economically vibrant areas of the world.

In the past two decades, Southeast Asia has experienced rapid growth. In Kusaka (2017) word despite two economic crises of 1997 and 2007, Southeast Asian countries deserve high marks for their development (Kusaka 2017). Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) played a very important role, especially in encouraging the flow of investments, capital and technological knowledge into the region (Diaconu 2014:903). It attracted huge investments from big powers, notably the United States, Europe and China and helped in overcoming economic problems, thereby escaping the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and their structural adjustment policies.

With the coming of huge FDI in the regions provided by cheap labor plus plentiful capital, the big power gradually began to play a crucial role by opening up its market to the region. With the opening up of the market, it gradually brought the problem of maintaining the security of the region, as with the flow of the economic market, the region became a vital source for providing critical security. Therefore, within a span of 20 years, i.e. 1997-2017, Southeast Asia witnessed an immense change in the sphere of political, social and power equations. First, due to the presence of heterogeneous and diverse governance system- Parliamentary republic in Singapore, Republic form in Indonesia and the Philippines, Constitutional Sultanate in Brunei, Democracy in Cambodia and Myanmar, Communist in Vietnam and Laos and Constitutional Monarchy in Thailand, the region grace the occasion for more rivalries and failed to secure any cooperation amongst the region in the organizing norms and principles of the international relations. Second, after the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997, China gradually evolved in engaging with Southeast Asia (Vaughn and Morrison 2006). Part of this credit goes to the China’s history as well as the cultural affinity that it shares with most of the Southeast Asian nation. Through the contagious border that China shares with most of the Southeast Asian states, it has paved in a wave of Chinese immigration into the region that has played a key role in China’s economic engagement with Southeast Asia and also into powering its overall strategic interest in Southeast Asia. The third most dynamic change that has occurred in Southeast Asia is the rise of radical extremism and Armed Non-State Actors. In the post 9/11 era, the globalization of terrorism has continued apace where states face a variety of terrorist threats, radical Islamists or jihadi terrorism (Romaniuk 2010:2). These actors imply random and targeted violence generating public anxiety and concern and has therefore increased the growing security challenges, particularly when institutions of governance and state legitimacy are weakened or under siege (Davis 2010:20). The 2002 triple bombing in Bali, 2003-suicide bombers attack on J.W Marriot Hotel in Jakarta, 2004 suicide bombing attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta, 2005 suicide bombing on a restaurant in Bali etc. set many examples that exemplify the rising threats of the Armed Non-State actors in Southeast Asia. Furthermore, the rise of ISIS with its allegiance to ISIS ideology has also given a new dimension and direction to the Armed Non-state actors across the globe. This pledge of allegiance has given something of a formal expression in the formation of many Southeast Asian wings of ISIS like Katibah Nusantara who provides training and social network help in creating like-minded pro-ISIS groups in Southeast Asia.

India and Southeast Asia: Engagement and Importance:

India and Southeast Asia share a long history of matured relations that goes back to the pre-historic period and which continued during the advent of European rule in the early seventeenth century (Morarji and Sharma 2015: 97). In the post-Independence phase, India continued to play an influential role in Southeast Asia and followed an independent policy of Non-Alignment without joining either of the two power blocs. Being the head of the Non-Aligned Movement, India began to champion the decolonization movement in the Southeast Asia. However, the movement was gradually short-lived as ideological differences prevented close ties between India and Southeast Asia. As India leaned more heavily on the Soviet Union with the increasingly assertive role of China, India and Southeast Asia relations took a new turn (Parameswaran 2010:1). In lieu of supporting different ideology both the nations advocated different economic strategies. India perceived Southeast Asia as a bulwark against the spread of communism (Wardhani 2011). It, therefore, remained aloof in its interaction with Southeast Asia.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union on one hand and the emergence of globalization on the other, India found itself out of the perceived shadow of the Soviet Union who was no longer available as a political, economic and security provider (Gadaffar 2016:24). This sudden change in international politics obligated India to reach out and engage with new powers and new regions. It endeavors India to make strategic rapprochement towards Southeast Asia that was enjoying a phenomenal economic success with the emergence of an autonomous regional body, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) (Naidu 2004:336). Hence, forth, India gradually established a rapid development with Southeast Asia region via its ‘Look East Policy.’ The policy acted as stimuli for India to move to her strategic shift in foreign policy as India began to manifest its relations with the region. Since then Look East never looked back, bringing together population, youth, military strength, and economy. It acted as a critical forum for peace and stability in Asia-Pacific region (The Hindu 2016). With years of stride and engagements, India’s conceivably felt that its initiative of economic engagement with the ASEAN members has become a multi-faceted encompassing security, strategic, political, counter-terrorism and defense collaboration. Therefore, under the ‘Act East’, India aspired to extend and expand its geographical influence beyond ASEAN to the Far East countries like Australia, Japan, South Korea and Pacific Island nations (Ministry of External Affairs 2015).

India and Vietnam: Exploring the Significance:

One of the most unique and dynamic relations in the whole Southeast Asia region is probably the India-Vietnam relations. Historically, both the nations share a common culture and economic links which date back to the 2nd century where Indian enterprising traders, merchants, and artisans patronized Indian art and culture and completely submerged it into the local Vietnam culture (The Economic Times 2010). As French established its colonial rule in Vietnam by the end of the 1880s, Vietnam witnessed the oppression of the colonial rule with acts of monopolization of trade, land grabbing and promotion of French commercial enterprises at the expense of the local Vietnamese people. Any forms of dissents and violence were met with suppression and activists were sentenced to death or imprisoned (Walsh 2015). At this prevailing forefront of the independence struggles, Vietnam looks to Indian leadership for support which was forthcoming in moral if not material terms (Brewster 2009:2). India at its side played a critical role as they made an effort to insert themselves into the Geneva Peace Talks of 1954 to seek for Vietnam’s Independence despite not being a signatory (Brewster 2009:3). Indian leaders like Subash Chandra Bose called on his countrymen to think of the Vietnamese struggle as part of the larger Asian struggle for freedom from western domination, and therefore to consider it their duty to rush in thousand and tens of thousands to help Vietnamese (SarDesai 1968:11). These acts and performance of India significantly brought Vietnam much closer into the orbit of Indian influence. Thereafter, under different leadership, New Delhi significantly oriented their policy with intrinsic moral and material strength infused by extensive political, economic, defense and maritime cooperation.

Vietnam’s Significance to India:

For a long time, India and Vietnam have stood together as a trusted friend and ally particularly in the Southeast Asia region. The relationship was woven on an ideological foundation of pan-Asian Nationalism reinforced by the Cold War struggle against the United States and by a shared fear of Chinese hegemony (Brewster 2009:3). All in all, a long history of political, social, cultural and economic factor played an important role in managing the pragmatic bond between India and Vietnam. As such, Vietnam occupies a pivotal position in India’s foreign policy orientation due to varied reasons.

i) Vietnam in Look East-Act East policy:

The initiation to explore the potential of India’s role in the international affairs, particularly after the demise of the Soviet Union endeavored New Delhi to make strategic rapprochement towards Southeast Asia; a region that was making a phenomenal economic success. This articulated in the formulation of Look East policy to explore the potential of India’s trade and economic cooperation with the Southeast Asian nations. In this regard, Vietnam significantly became an important pillar of the Look East policy as it serves a crucial part in the promotion of India’s economic, political and security interests in Southeast Asia. In the word of Xuan Vinh, Vietnam is a potential regional power in South-East Asia with great political stability and a successful economic performer with an annual growth rate of seven per cent. Vietnam’s geo-strategic location, its demonstrated military prowess, and its national willpower lend it a critical place in the strategic calculus of South-East Asia. Economically, Vietnam with its stress on economic liberalization offers very attractive preferential prospects for Indian foreign direct investment (FDI). In terms of India’s energy security, Vietnam’s offshore oil deposit offers opportunities for exploration and eventual supply to India. On political and foreign policy issues Vietnam had been a consistent supporter of India, including our scheme for the reform of the United Nations and our recent bid for permanent membership in the Security Council. Apart from cooperation in the bilateral framework, the two countries have maintained close cooperation and mutual support at the regional and international fora such as the UN, NAM and other mechanisms in the ASEAN like the ARF, East Asia Summit and Mekong Ganga Cooperation (Vinh 2013:25-26).

This significant course of integration with Vietnam has succeeded in acquiring momentum to deepen the relations, stepping initiatives to promote and expand linkages to enhance the role of the pragmatic relationship between the two nations. In 2007, India, therefore, culminated in signing a ‘Strategic Partnership’ agreement with Vietnam under the Look East Policy emphasizing to tie its linkages from trade and commerce to military and defense to cultural bonds (Asian Warrior 2016). With the signing of the strategic agreement, the relations grew on a pragmatic note with a rapid increase in the bilateral trade with a total turnover in 2011 at US$1. 89 billion increasing four times that of five years ago (Vietnam Business Forum 2012). Vietnam became an attractive investment destination for Indian Companies, particularly in mineral and oil exploration, agro-chemical, ITs, and sugar manufacturing. Likewise, Vietnam also made few investment projects in India with a total investment of US$ 26million (Embassy of India 2016).

In the recent time as the geopolitics in Asia-Pacific is quickly changing, there emerge trends of convergence of strategic framework so as to remain occupied with the best way forward to manage the rapidly changing contours. In this regard, India’s considered in strengthening its link with the neighboring Southeast Asian countries through its rechristened Act-East policy which further heightened Vietnam’s importance in India’s foreign policy orientation. Under the new leadership of Narendra Modi, New Delhi reaffirms its seriousness in engaging with its neighbor to reposition itself in the evolving geo-political dynamics to play a greater responsible role of a leader. In this upswing, New Delhi and Hanoi decided to upgrade their ‘Strategic Partnership’ to a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ during Modi’s visit to Vietnam in September 2016 (Panda 2016). In his banquet speech, Modi acknowledged that a strong India-Vietnam partnership would lead to prosperity, development, peace, and stability between each other, and in the wider region. He further stated that Vietnam remains a strong pillar of India's Act East Policy and India-Vietnam relations corresponds to strong mutual trust, understanding, and convergence of views on various regional and international issues.

Vietnam’s centrality in the India’s Act East policy is emphasized by the fact that it gives India a strategic advantage in pursuance of its policy objective. Vietnam gives New Delhi an important historical linkage to reinvigorate and extend its ties with the other Southeast Asian nations. With the newly elected civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar, India can enhance the opportunity to connect Vietnam via Myanmar through various corridor projects, including the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway and Asian Highway 1 giving India a pivotal position in sustaining its presence in the Southeast Asia region. In Addition, Vietnam’s presence in Act East policy can also help India to establish a close connection with most of the ASEAN countries that are growing into an economic powerhouse. Furthermore, the geographical location of Vietnam also endows it with rich mineral resources, including coal, phosphates, rare earth elements, bauxite, iron, gold, manganese, offshore oil and gas deposits, and hydrocarbon. In this regard, India can take the profitable advantage in harnessing Vietnam’s rich natural resources to its growing energy needs for two important reasons. First, Gulf countries, including Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia have been India’s principal supplier of energy needs. However, the phases of uncertainty in the region due to political turmoil present a daunting task in the continuous flow of energy from the region. Second, the distance also contributes a challenging factor in the energy supply. In most cases, the energy supply from the Gulf region has to go through difficult phases, including piracy, hijacking and other existential threats in between the delivery system. In this circumstance, India’s energy outlook to other regions can ease India’s growing energy needs. The geographical proximity of Vietnam and the presence of rich energy resources can, therefore, ease India growing energy problems.

ii) Southeast Asia and China’s dominance:

With the gradual shift in the power structure and the changing economic configuration from west to east, China managed to build a platform to dominate the multi-polar world order by building coalitions as well as expanding its economic influence. Within it, China’s dominance in Southeast Asia region has been one of the significant developing features. However, China- Southeast Asia relations was not a sudden spurt, but rather a gradual one. China’s relation with Southeast Asia was at the lowest ebb particularly in the 1940s when the country was at the early stage of Communist takeover and the succeeding years of fierce Cultural Revolution. Southeast Asia saw communism as a threat to its survival. In fact, many Southeast Asian countries considered China as an exporter of communism. As such China-Southeast Asia interaction, therefore, suffered from the ideological divide in general (To 2001:61). Moreover, when the ASEAN was first formed in 1967 particularly with an anti-communist group it further strained the diplomatic engagement with Beijing as suspicion and antagonism became a stumbling block. However, in the post-Cold War period, China managed to develop its relations with Southeast Asia. A number of factors have contributed to the development of its relationship with the ASEAN states. First, Southeast Asia being a close neighbor gave Beijing a strategic importance in Chinese foreign policy in lieu of being surrounded by major powers in all directions. Second, in line with the changing geopolitical situation, Beijing felt the need to transform its leaders from being a Maoist revolutionary communist to developmental communist in order to ensure its economic development and create a viable atmosphere for positive engagement with the Southeast Asian nations.

To the extent, China remains successful in upgrading its relations with Southeast Asia. As of today, China is the top trading partner for most of the countries in Southeast Asia. At the political level, China has managed to extend its relations with most of the nation in the region with few hiccups. It entered in the ASEAN Regional Forum that discusses critical issues relating to the regions. As such, from being a mere suspicion of exporter of communism to being the top trading partner, Beijing has taken the full advantage of the available resources at its disposal in mending its relations with the ASEAN states in the fields of trade, aid, commerce, education etc. Over the years, China has played the role of an engine in securing the smooth functioning of the ASEAN train. Right from helping to recover the crisis-hit economies of the ASEAN states during the 1997 Asian Financial Crisis, today ASEAN economic hugely depends on China for its assistance and maneuver.

On the other side India, a major power with an enormous potential has not only acquired a geographical footprint in Southeast Asia, but also stands out distinctly as an integral part of the region, recognizing the importance of Southeast Asia region as a desirable pathway in justifying the status of being a major power. After the demise of the Soviet Union and the onset of globalization, India began to foster new ties with Southeast Asia that was enjoying a phenomenal economic success. Consequently, India began as a Sectoral Dialogue Partner in 1992, becoming a full Dialogue Partner in 1995, a member of the ASEAN Regional Forum in 1996, a Summit Level Partner in 2002, a member of the East Asia Summit in 2005, an ASEAN Business Forum in 2011 and a Strategic Partner of ASEAN in 2012 (Gaffar 2016:25). As of May 2016, the Foreign Direct Investment or FDI inflows into India from ASEAN was about US$ 49.40 billion, while from India to ASEAN countries was about US$ 38.672 billion (ASEAN India 2017).

However, the justification remains deeply challenged by the presence of the other powers, including China who have managed an insurmountable grip in the region. The growing role of China in the region has heightened India’s security concern in the region. The multilateral engagement of China to suffice the growing need of the regions, to engage in dialogue and institutions and the introduction of geo-economic after the end of the Cold War in connecting the economic and commercial opportunities, to broadening international political relations and military capabilities has created a security dilemma viz-a-viz India’s influence in the region (Schmidt 2014:250). It has ultimately made India reorient its approach and outlook towards the Southeast Asian nations so as to play a pivotal role in sustaining its presence in the region.

In this regard, Vietnam plays a prominent role in India’s discourse to power dominance in Southeast Asia region. The strategic location of Vietnam traversed by important sea lanes of communication and trade routes give India an alternative option to connect and consolidate its position in the region. Vietnam’s long coastline of the South China Sea spanning almost all of the western stretch of the disputed South China Sea and the influence of the Mainland Southeast Asia gives India an upper hand in enhancing its geo-economic and geo-strategic influence in the region viz-a-viz China’s assertive rise. It also gives India an important position in strengthening and controlling its naval and air power along these routes that further help in expanding its influence from the Straits of Hormuz to the Straits of Malacca and further to the Far East to Japan and Australia. During Modi’s visit to Vietnam in 2016, India extended a $500 million line of credit to Vietnam to procure defense equipment so as to deepen the bilateral defense ties and respond to emerging regional challenges (The Times of India 2016). Apart from the linkages, Vietnam also gives India an option to garner the available energy resources from the additional oil blocks in the South China Sea (Business Standard 2014). In this regard, India challenged the issue of South China Sea by consenting to an agreement with Vietnam in 2011 to expand and promote oil exploration in the South China Sea regardless of Beijing’s' determined test to the legitimateness of India nearness.

India’s significance to Vietnam:

Although in most of the discussion amongst the academician and foreign policy experts on India-Vietnam relations, they pay more attention as to why Vietnam is important to India, However, on the other note, one may examine the nature and magnitude of India’s importance to Vietnam. Like Vietnam, India also has an important role and place in Vietnam foreign policy orientation. Being a staunch supporter of Vietnam’s independence from French colonial rule to opposing American involvement in the Vietnam War, India always holds a significant importance to Vietnam. Moreover, a long history of shared political, cultural and economic interest also played a pivotal role in sustaining India’s presence in Vietnam’s foreign policy course.

i) India an alternative power viz-a-viz China’s domination:

The long persistent dominance of China in Southeast Asia has created an uneasy atmosphere to most of the ASEAN states including Vietnam. Although the rise of the ASEAN economy has been backed by China’s financial support and investments the growth in Chinese power projection capabilities has enabled them to become the predominant power in Southeast Asia region. The power differential between the ASEAN member states, Lack of cooperation, domestic constraints and intra-regional tensions are some of the factors that had contributed to the rise of China in the region. It created an environment in which most of the member states pursued different bilateral actions and policies towards China. It is in this regard, Vietnam feels India by virtue of its geographical size, its rising economy through its growing web of economic interaction like Free Trade Agreements, and Preferential Trade Agreement etc. can play a greater role in the region. In the words of Vietnam foreign minister Phạm Bình Minh at the Indian Council of World Affair in 2013 he unveiled a strong role of India in Asia-Pacific region against the backdrop of shift of power from the west to the east (ICWA 2013:7). Minh stated that… India commands a geo-political location that straddles the land and maritime space between East and West and forms a component of the regional security structure (ICWA 2013:7).

India’s Look East policy to explore the potential of India’s trade and economic cooperation with the Southeast Asian nations is viewed as a successful policy in forging a closer economic tie with the ASEAN member states. With Look East policy, Vietnam feels India can explore the unexplored realms in building stronger relations with the ASEAN states. Initiatives like India-ASEAN and East Asia summits where the emphasis was given to explore the freedom of navigation, peaceful resolution of disputes, Joint communiqué to oppose threats to freedom of navigations etc. give India an active role in strengthening its relations with the ASEAN states. ASEAN perceives India to be benign whose interest is more of a commercial in nature and less strategically focused (Ghosal 2013:108). As such, with the entry of India, Vietnam feels it can create a new regional structure which can enhance balance and help in securing peace and stability in the region.

ii) The South China Sea Issue and India’s role:

The South China Sea, a sea which forms a part of the larger Pacific Ocean is located south of China, northwest of the Philippines and east of Vietnam and Cambodia. The sea connects the Pacific and Indian oceans and conveys a huge strategic significance as more than one-third of the world’s shipping trade exchange passes through it. The area also has a huge gas and oil reserves that can suffice the energy need of the world. China on the historical fact guarantees the South China Sea as a part of their region on the premise of the nine-dash line which Chiang Kai-Shek had progressed in 1947 (Pedrozo 2014 and Johnson 2015). On the other hand, international community guarantees that the South China Sea is international water and asserting sovereignty over such an area can only be dictated by the United Nations Convention on Laws of the Sea (UNCLOS).

It is in this regard that the South China Sea has become a subject of competing claims of sovereignty between China and few ASEAN countries including Vietnam. Vietnam hotly disputed China’s historical perspective claiming sovereignty over Paracels and Spratlys islands. Vietnam rather claims to have it active rule over these islands historically with maps, documents, and publications in support of its sovereignty claims over the two islands (Pedrozo 2014: 38).

With China building harbors, reclaiming land for dredging, building artificial islands equipped with an air base, port, and lighthouses in and around the disputed islands, Vietnam have tried its best in calibrating its power and positions in stopping the influence of Chinese aggression in the disputed area. However, in most of the cases, its attempt has met with failure particularly due to lack of mutual understanding in solving the issue. In this situation, Vietnam feels India can play a constructive role in the disputed South China Sea knowing India’s stand for maintaining and upholding freedom of navigation for trade and communication on the high sea and its growing stature in the Asia-Pacific region viz-a-viz China. On his trip to India in 2013, Nguyen Phu Trong, the General Secretary of Communist Party of Vietnam said…peace, stability, maritime security, and cooperation for mutual benefits in the East Sea represent the essential interest of countries within and outside the region. Within this, we highly appreciate India's constructive position on this issue (The Economic Times 2013). India significance as a constructive role in a way also espouses India ultimate aim of security provider in the region, thereby challenging the Chinese hegemony in the region. It also acts as potentials for cementing its tie with the ASEAN states in all regional forums. Correspondingly the Chairwoman of National Assembly of Vietnam and a member of Standing Committee of Politburo, Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan appreciated India’s energizing ties with the ASEAN states through its Look East-Act East policy and invited India to invest and explore energy in the South China Sea (The Hindu 2016).

iii) Vietnam’s sector and India’s opportunities:

In the 2012 McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) report, it affirmed that in the long term the key elements that power Vietnam’s growth will be running away. Vietnam needs to develop new sources of growth to replace the earlier one so as to prevent the attack of macroeconomic instability that it is currently facing. It needs to improve its capabilities across different sectors and also identify the need to look for new sources and resources that can bring new growth opportunities. Although Vietnam Government has implemented various programs in encouraging the companies to seek foreign investment through shareholding however the progress remains slow due to varied reasons, including the fear of losing state security and managing the massive investment for the industries.

In this situation, India can infuse much-needed capital and technology in Vietnam. Governed by strong trade mechanism, marked by close cooperation in various forums and encapsulated by India’s Look East- Act East Policy, India can play a pivotal role in scaling the available opportunities. In the realm of Act East Policy, India’s ‘Make in India’ approach has been a relevant channel in bringing new initiatives such as textiles, accessories that are more service-oriented and friendly in the Vietnam’s market.

Following are the top 10 export commodities to Vietnam from India:

1. Iron and steel

2. Food waste, animal fodder

3. Cereals

4. Cotton

5. Pharmaceutical

6. Fish

7. Machines, engines, pumps

8. Plastics

9. Organic chemicals

10. Rawhides (http://www.worldsrichestcountries.com/top-vietnam-imports.html).

It is therefore fitting to make a statement that there are numerous opportunities, investment and joint ventures in the sectors like textiles, pharmaceuticals, IT and communications, etc. that offers a good phase to the Indian companies to establish and boost good and services ties with Vietnam.

CONCLUSION:

India and Vietnam relations have been the most contrasting one in the whole of Southeast Asia region. As for India, Vietnam gives a strategic leverage in countering Beijing’s presence in the Southeast Asia region. It further allows New Delhi to expand its influence further east, thereby giving a rationale to its Act-East Policy. Vietnam, on the other hand, looks upon India as an alternate outside power in the region that can derail Chinese ambitions in Southeast Asia. As such both the nations have an objective to justify a momentum in harnessing the friendly relations. However, India has to be careful in implementing its role in Vietnam keeping in view the side effects of upsetting the dragon. India has to carefully handle its national interest keeping in light the objective, trends and the nature of the changing equations of power in the 21st century.

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Received on 26.02.2018 Modified on 21.03.2018

Res. J. Humanities and Social Sciences. 2018; 9(4): 893-900.

DOI: 10.5958/2321-5828.2018.00150.X