China and Vietnam will hold joint military exercises for the first time. Previously, military cooperation was limited to joint maritime patrols. About this reported Ministry of Defense of the People’s Republic of China.
The maneuvers are planned for July in Guangxi, an autonomous region in southern China. The training was called “Walking side by side 2025”. As part of the exercises, the military personnel of both countries will train in joint patrolling of border areas and work out interaction in the field.
As noted in the ministry, the main goal of the exercises is to strengthen the mutual exchange of experience in the field of border protection, as well as to expand practical military cooperation between the armies of China and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Vietnam is also intensifying defense ties with Russia. General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam To Lam, after meeting with the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin in May 2025, expressed interest in cooperation in the field of defense, in particular in the fields of cyber security, military equipment and energy.
It will be recalled that on July 3, US President Donald Trump announced that an agreement had been reached between the US and Vietnam regarding the tariff policy. Under the agreement, the US would impose a 20% tariff on Vietnamese goods, while Vietnam would import US products duty-free. Previously, the US tariff on goods from Vietnam was 46%.
The deepening of economic ties between the United States and Vietnam began during the 2017-2021 trade conflict between the United States and China. During this period, imports from Vietnam to the US tripled, from less than $50 billion in 2018 to approximately $137 billion in 2024. At the same time, US exports to Vietnam have grown by 30% to more than $13 billion in 2024.
