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Khang Vu

Khang Vu is a visiting scholar in the Political Science Department at Boston College.

Khang Vu is a visiting scholar in the Political Science Department at Boston College. He was a 2023-2024 Hans J. Morgenthau pre-doctoral fellow at the University of Notre Dame. Khang received his Ph.D. from Boston College in 2024 and his master’s degree from Dartmouth College in 2019. He is also a regular contributor to the Lowy Institute’s blog The Interpreter. His other writings have appeared in International Security, the Journal of Contemporary China, War on the Rocks, The National Interest, East Asia Forum, Fulcrum, to name a few. His expertise is in East Asian security, arms control, alliance politics, inter-Korean security issues, and Vietnam’s foreign policy. Follow him on X or LinkedIn.

Posts by Khang Vu

March 10, 2023

The Analytical Obsession With ‘Factions’ in Vietnamese Politics

By Khang Vu

There is little evidence that the country’s political landscape is divided into “pro-Chinese” and “pro-American” camps.

February 28, 2023

Why Vietnam’s UN Abstention on Ukraine Was a Rational Move

By Khang Vu

The country’s domestic political structure emphasizes continuity in foreign policy, and changes its stance only when there is a clear benefit in doing so.

February 22, 2023

Land Before Water: Why Vietnam’s Grand Strategy is Fundamentally Continental

By Khang Vu

Despite limited past operations in littoral waters, the country's strategic attention has been overwhelmingly directed at land-based threats.

January 25, 2023

Why Vietnam’s Political Shake-Up Will Not Affect Its Foreign Policy

By Khang Vu

Two structural constraints, one international and one domestic, ensure a high degree of continuity in Hanoi's external relations.

December 16, 2022

How Vietnam Can Balance Against China, on Land and at Sea

By Khang Vu

Vietnam’s proximity to China and lack of strategic depth limit its options in forming security partnerships with other great powers.

November 17, 2022

Why the Current Stall in US-Vietnam Relations is Necessary for Vietnam’s Security

By Khang Vu

As has been the case for much of history, stable, manageable relations with China form the foundation of the country's foreign policy.

September 09, 2022

Why Vietnam Should Not Go Nuclear

By Khang Vu

Pursuing a nuclear deterrent against Chinese aggression would undermine the country's international reputation and destabilize relations with Beijing.

August 24, 2022

To Guarantee Its Survival, Vietnam Needs to Look West

By Khang Vu

The South China Sea matters to Vietnam’s economic development, but its land borders are the key to its long-term security.

July 22, 2022

Why Vietnam Should be Worried About Laos’ Economic Crisis

By Khang Vu

The country's travails could deepen China's influence and destabilize the longstanding alliance between Hanoi and Vientiane.

April 05, 2022

Why Vietnam Holds the Trump Card in the US-Vietnam Partnership

By Khang Vu

Hanoi enjoys considerable leverage as a frontline state in Washington's strategic competition with Beijing.

March 01, 2022

Why the Russia-Ukraine War is Not the Same as the Sino-Vietnamese War of 1979

By Khang Vu

Vietnam's alliance with the Soviet Union put limits on how far China could go. Those limits don't exist in the current situation.

August 25, 2021

China’s Wedge Strategy Towards the US-Vietnam Partnership

By Khang Vu

Through a variety of measures, Beijing is seeking to reinforce Vietnam’s neutrality in the competition between the superpowers.