US aircraft carrier in Vietnam for historic visit

DANANG, Vietnam: A US aircraft carrier arrived in Vietnam on Monday for war, as the former foes bolster military ties in the face of Beijing’s buildup in the disputed South China Sea.

The will make a four-day port call to the central city of Danang for a highly symbolic trip that will include a visit to a center for victims of Agent Orange, the toxic defoliant sprayed over large swathes of land by the US during the Vietnam war.

But ongoing tensions in the South China Sea loom over the trip as Beijing continues to build military installations—much to the chagrin of Vietnam and other claimants to the sea.

Though the US is not a claimant to the resource-rich waterway, it has long lobbied for freedom of navigation in the sea to counter

Analysts say the port call, which follows a visit to the Philippines last month, is a chance for the muscle in Asia.

“It’s a US push... to demonstrate a massive naval presence in the South China Sea area to China, that the US is staying engaged,” Vietnam expert Carl Thayer told Agence France-Presse ahead of the trip.

Vietnam remains the most vocal claimant in the region after the Philippines backed off under China-friendly President Rodrigo Duterte. Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also have claims in the sea.

Duterte has refused to implement a landmark 2016 international tribunal ruling in Manila’s favor over its competing claims with Beijing.

“The Philippines has just rolled over, China is continually mil maintain a presence in the region, Vietnam’s got nowhere to hide,” Thayer said.