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“Putin’s triumphal reception in Hanoi will mark a counter-point to Russia’s recent setbacks,” said Carlyle Thayer, emeritus professor at the Australian Defence Force Academy, listing the recent Ukraine conference in Switzerland and new European Union sanctions on Russia.
They were the latest Western sanctions imposed on Russia since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”.
Putin’s public relations blitz has been helped by the fact that Vietnam, unlike North Korea, has friendly relations with the United States and its allies, Zachary Abuza, a professor at the US National War College, said.
“Although there was a lot less of the fanfare and performative aspects than in North Korea, this visit was still important for Putin because Vietnam is actually an important actor in the global economy, not some comically evil pariah state,” Abuza said.
