China’s Xi meets with Vietnamese prime minister on second day of visit to shore up ties

By HUIZHONG WU
Associated Press

BANGKOK (AP) — Chinese leader Xi Jinping has met with Vietnam’s prime minister and the head of the country’s National Assembly on the second day of his visit to shore up Beijing’s relationship with Hanoi. Xi met with Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on Tuesday, and they announced that China and Vietnam would work toward a “community with a shared future,” in what was seen as a diplomatic concession by Vietnam to Beijing. Vietnam has resisted using that phrase in the past but wanted to assuage Beijing’s concerns after Vietnam designated both the U.S. and Japan as “comprehensive strategic partners” in recent months, a designation it uses for China. Xi referenced the phrase again Wednesday in a meeting with National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue.