US, Vietnam discuss supplying Hanoi with C-130 military transport planes, sources say
Lockheed Martin aircraft can haul troops, gear, supplies
White House, Vietnam defence ministry could reach deal this year
Vietnam is trying to diversify arms supplies away from Russia
By Francesco Guarascio and Trevor Hunnicutt
HANOI/WASHINGTON, July 25 (Reuters) -The United States and Vietnam are discussing the sale of Lockheed Martin C-130 Hercules military transport planes to Hanoi, two people familiar with the discussions said, in a sign of closer security cooperation between the two former foes.
The talks could lead to a supply agreement this year, the sources said, in what would represent Vietnam's largest military deal since it said publicly at the end of 2022 that it intended to diversify its defence supplies, which have for decades relied heavily on Russian gear.
The C-130 can carry soldiers, military equipment and other supplies, and would boost Vietnamese defence capabilities at a time of rising South China Sea boundary tensions with China and other countries in the region.
The United States could offer Hanoi financial support as part of a sale, the sources said. One of the sources, a U.S. official,said that could amount to tens of millions of dollars covering maintenance and other costs.
The other source, a Vietnamese person briefed on the talks, said the model under consideration was the C-130J, the aircraft's latest iteration.
Neither source would indicate the total cost of the possible deal and the number of planes under discussion. Both declined to be named because the talks were not public.
Lockheed Martin LMT.N referred questions to the U.S. or Vietnamesegovernments. The White House declined to comment, and Vietnam's defence ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
Talks on U.S. arms supplies to Communist-ruled Vietnam have been under way for months, before major changes in Vietnamese leadership, which experts and analysts say should not significantly change the country's posture on foreign and economic affairs.
The discussions show the United States' growing efforts to gain influence with Hanoi, nearly half a century after the end of the Vietnam War.
Since an arms embargo was lifted in 2016, U.S. defence exports to Vietnam have been largely limited to coastguard ships and trainer aircraft, stymied by Hanoi's concerns over costs, U.S. government approvals and compatibility with existing gear.
FIGHTER JETS
Vietnam's police have looked into buying U.S.-made helicopters, and the defence ministry has considered different types of U.S. aircraft, including F-16 fighter jets, Reuters has reported.
The Vietnamese official confirmed the talks over F-16s, also produced by Lockheed Martin, but said those negotiations were less advanced because U.S. fighter jets were seen as more likely to affect Vietnam's relations with other countries, including China.
C-130s were "less sensitive", the official said, because they could be viewed as defensive or non-combat equipment.
U.S. congressional approval for the fighters may be more complicated than for C-130s, the Vietnamese official said, noting that Hanoi had also concerns about whether the U.S. would approve the sale of missiles to arm the F-16s.
U.S. State Department reports have laid out human rights violations in the Southeast Asian country, further complicating arms transfer approvals.
Reporting by Francesco Guarascio in Hanoi and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington; additional reporting by Mike Stone and Patricia Zengerle. Editing by Gerry Doyle
면책조항: XM Group 회사는 체결 전용 서비스와 온라인 거래 플랫폼에 대한 접근을 제공하여, 개인이 웹사이트에서 또는 웹사이트를 통해 이용 가능한 콘텐츠를 보거나 사용할 수 있도록 허용합니다. 이에 대해 변경하거나 확장할 의도는 없습니다. 이러한 접근 및 사용에는 다음 사항이 항상 적용됩니다: (i) 이용 약관, (ii) 위험 경고, (iii) 완전 면책조항. 따라서, 이러한 콘텐츠는 일반적인 정보에 불과합니다. 특히, 온라인 거래 플랫폼의 콘텐츠는 금융 시장에서의 거래에 대한 권유나 제안이 아닙니다. 금융 시장에서의 거래는 자본에 상당한 위험을 수반합니다.
온라인 거래 플랫폼에 공개된 모든 자료는 교육/정보 목적으로만 제공되며, 금융, 투자세 또는 거래 조언 및 권고, 거래 가격 기록, 금융 상품 또는 원치 않는 금융 프로모션의 거래 제안 또는 권유를 포함하지 않으며, 포함해서도 안됩니다.
이 웹사이트에 포함된 모든 의견, 뉴스, 리서치, 분석, 가격, 기타 정보 또는 제3자 사이트에 대한 링크와 같이 XM이 준비하는 콘텐츠 뿐만 아니라, 제3자 콘텐츠는 일반 시장 논평으로서 "현재" 기준으로 제공되며, 투자 조언으로 여겨지지 않습니다. 모든 콘텐츠가 투자 리서치로 해석되는 경우, 투자 리서치의 독립성을 촉진하기 위해 고안된 법적 요건에 따라 콘텐츠가 의도되지 않았으며, 준비되지 않았다는 점을 인지하고 동의해야 합니다. 따라서, 관련 법률 및 규정에 따른 마케팅 커뮤니케이션이라고 간주됩니다. 여기에서 접근할 수 있는 앞서 언급한 정보에 대한 비독립 투자 리서치 및 위험 경고 알림을 읽고, 이해하시기 바랍니다.
