Chinese Digital Influence in South East Asia - Vietnam

Last updated: 3 Jul 2024

Introduction

Executive Summary

In the last decades Southeast Asia has increasingly become a playground for world powers, namely China and the USA, fighting over influence in the region. The State of Southeast Asia 2024 Survey Report garnered significant attention as it showcased that if respondents were forced to align with the USA and China, 50.5 % would choose China. While this showed a significant increase in the influence China has in the region the same survey showed that 50.1% of respondents answered they distrust China while only 37.6% distrust the USA.[1] While this may seem paradoxical it only highlights the complexity and the dynamism the fight over influence in the region has.

Chinas situation in Southeast Asia, Oceania, and India differs from country to country, as several countries in the region are either allies of the USA or more aligned with China. Many of them actively try to maintain a balanced position in an effort to benefit from both highly influential super-powers. Therefore, China employs the economic, diplomatic, and online influence channels across the many countries in its close region as it sees fit, in order to advance Chinas regional stance. Moreover, territorial disputes in the South China Sea (SCS) and across the Himalayan border involve the Chinese military kinetic activity in addition to the economic and online influence channels.

In this ongoing series we will cover several countries and regional conflicts out of the perspective of digital influence. The aim is to create a foundation on which more detailed research can be conducted as specific case studies. The main focus is on Chinese Influence.

Key findings

Most countries we examined were targeted by coordinated inauthentic digital behavior that propagated pro-China content. In Vietnam, we identified a surge in inauthentic digital activity propagating positive messages about the China-Vietnam relationship prior to and during a high-profile visit of President Xi Jinping.
Social media accounts of Chinese embassies and officials across most of the countries in........................