Chinese and Vietnamese army medics to stage joint pandemic and emergency drill as Beijing seeks to boost Southeast Asian ties
- The competition between Washington and Beijing has spurred China’s efforts to boost ties with its neighbours despite the ongoing disputes in the South China Sea
- One of the latest examples is the exercise in the Vietnamese city of Mong Cai which will test their ability to respond to a major outbreak of disease
The Chinese and Vietnamese militaries will stage their first joint medical drills next week as Beijing continues a drive to woo its Southeast Asian neighbours as its competes for influence with the United States.
On Monday, 84 People’s Liberation Army medics will join their counterparts from the Vietnamese People’s Army in the seven-day Peace Rescue 2021 joint exercises in Mong Cai, a Vietnamese city bordering the southwestern Chinese region of Guangxi, according to state-owned Xinhua news agency.
It will be the first overseas drill the PLA medical corps has taken part in since the start of the pandemic.
It comes as Beijing has stepped up its engagement with members of the Association of Southeast Asian nations, with President Xi Jinping hosting a virtual summit with the bloc two weeks ago and opening a Laos-China rail link on Friday.
He also criticised “various negative factors that pose threats to peace” – a veiled reference to the US, which is also trying to increase its sway in the region and enraged Beijing in September when it unveiled the Aukus security alliance with Britain and Australia.