Some US senators on January 15 congratulated Vietnam on assuming the Chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an important multilateral organisation for advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Ely Ratner, former Deputy National Security Advisor to former Vice President Joe Biden, on July 29 (local time) posted on his Twitter a letter of four US senators opposing China’s actions in the East Sea.

Increased tensions in the East Sea will be part of discussions between Vietnamese and American lawmakers during a Hanoi visit this week by a delegation from the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs.

 Six US senators have issued a joint statement criticizing China’s stationing of its oil rig HD-981 in the disputed waters and attacks on Vietnamese ships, describing its actions as ‘troubling’ in the region.