VIETNAM PERSPECTIVE

VnExpress International reveals a discreet diplomatic move: Vietnam requested Iran to "prioritize safe passage" for its vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. This is bamboo diplomacy at work—Hanoi takes no side in the conflict but negotiates direct privileged access for its commercial fleet. Vietnam, whose Middle East oil imports have risen recently, cannot afford prolonged blockade. The article notes the request was made through diplomatic channels, not public speeches—total contrast to Trump's tweets. This detail is absent from all Western coverage. If Vietnam negotiates passage with Iran, how many other countries are doing so quietly? The war over Hormuz is also a war for privileged access—countries that take no sides gain advantages belligerents do not. Vietnamese diplomacy mirrors Trump's posture inverted. Trump tweets "just TAKE IT." Hanoi negotiates in silence. The result: Vietnam likely obtains what Trump demands others seize by force—safe passage. "Bamboo diplomacy" (ngoại giao tre trúc) is not metaphor: it is foreign policy that bends without breaking, allies without committing, and obtains through discretion what others fail to through threat. If other countries—Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand—negotiate similar passages, a parallel geography of oil trade is taking shape, invisible to Western media.