Gorbachev and Southeast Asia (Routledge Revivals) by Leszek Buszynski

Author:Leszek Buszynski [Buszynski, Leszek]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, Regional Studies, Political Science, International Relations, Diplomacy
ISBN: 9781134480579
Google: NuNXAwAAQBAJ
Barnesnoble:
Goodreads: 37913912
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2013-05-13T00:00:00+00:00

Vietnamese withdrawal from Cambodia – the Soviet role

The Vietnamese decision to withdraw forces from Cambodia was a product of factors indigenous to Vietnam’s security and economic predicament. After the 6th Vietnamese Party Congress of December 1986, when the reformists strengthened their position within the party, the link between withdrawal from Cambodia and economic reform within Vietnam became more apparent. The Gorbachev leadership’s views of the Cambodian situation overlapped with those of the reformists who had an incentive to withdraw forces from Cambodia speedily. Soviet pressure upon Vietnam for an early withdrawal of forces came in the form of persuasion, cajoling and urging during conferences and bilateral meetings. The ultimate sanction for the Russian side was the development of relations with China which, in view of the relationship established with Vietnam, was the only one available to the Gorbachev leadership. ASEAN leaders expected the Gorbachev leadership to employ Soviet economic aid or military support as a lever against Vietnam but the Russians were reluctant to comply. The Vietnamese were in the process of withdrawing forces from Cambodia and such drastic sanctions, which would have destroyed the Soviet relationship with Vietnam, were not apparently considered. It is significant to note in this context that Soviet military and economic assistance to Vietnam was reduced after the Vietnamese withdrawal from Cambodia and not before.

The categorization of Vietnamese leaders has been stoutly contested in the past when it was a matter of deciding between ‘pro-Soviet’ and ‘pro-China’ factions. The division of the leadership after the 6th Party Congress into ‘reformists’ and ‘conservatives’ has had a firmer basis in Vietnamese politics. The reformists and the economists who comprised that grouping directly linked a withdrawal from Cambodia with the easing of Vietnam’s economic plight.47 Pham Hung who had replaced Pham Van Dong as Premier on 18 June 1987 drew attention to the grain problem in Vietnam which he claimed was affecting the economic life of the country and which was the party’s urgent priority for the future.48 Chairman of the State Planning Commission and Vice Premier Vo Van Kiet, in his economic report to the National Assembly on 23 December 1987, noted with concern that grain production dropped from 19 million tonnes in 1986 to 18 million tonnes in 1987; population growth in Vietnam was 2 per cent and, he stated, would quickly outstrip available food supplies; over 1985–7 annual per capita grain production dropped from 340 kg to 280 kg.49 The reformists promulgated a liberal foreign investment law, which was passed by the National Assembly on 29 December 1987, as a major step in the move towards economic renewal. That investment law permitted 100 per cent foreign investment in projects, the repatriation of profits and two-year tax holidays, and provided assurances against nationalization or expropriation.50

The party conservatives gathered about the ailing, partially blind, but still influential figure of Le Duc Tho. Though without a politburo position since the 6th Party Congress, Le Duc Tho had much support within the party and still attended important politburo meetings.

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