A Democratic Vietnam; Not in the United States' Core Interests

Despite the U.S. commitment to human rights and democratic ideals, the U.S. should not press Vietnam for democratic reform simply because it is not in the United States core interest of rebalancing towards the Pacific and building relations with Asian nations to counter growing Chinese dominance in the region. There are four main aspects to this argument. First, Vietnam is not ready for democratization. A premature redistribution of power would cause social, economic and political instability that would destabilize the region and make Vietnam a poor strategic partner. Second, pushing democratization and human rights reform would be resisted by the Vietnamese and hinder the United States growing partnership with Vietnam. Third, Vietnam is currently straddling the fence, balancing relations between the U.S. and China U.S. pressure for democratization and other reforms would push Vietnam to align more closely with China. Fourth, democratization in Vietnam may be a self-correcting problem. There are indications of growing self-determination and representation within Vietnamese governance that may develop, but only under the appropriate conditions stemming from domestic, not foreign, influence.