Emerging Voices Volume 6
Bamboo Diplomacy in the New Era: Vietnam’s Foreign Policy Under To Lam
April 2025
Nguyễn Khắc Giang is a Vietnamese writer and researcher. He is currently a Visiting Fellow in the Vietnam Studies Programme at the ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute. Previously, he led the Political Unit at the Vietnam Institute for Economic and Policy Research (VEPR) and worked as a journalist in Hanoi. Giang holds a PhD in Political Science from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand.
Key Messages
↗ Vietnam’s ‘bamboo diplomacy’ has enabled it to navigate complex international relations but needs to be recalibrated as the country confronts diminished institutional capacity and a complex strategic environment.
↗ To Lam, the new chief of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party, is well positioned to reorient Vietnam’s foreign policy from cautious hedger to an increasingly assertive middle power.
↗ To effectively address emerging challenges and opportunities for Vietnam, he must modernise established systems while preserving Vietnam’s traditional diplomatic strengths—patience, pragmatism, and careful balancing.
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