FILE - In this Oct. 16, 2007, file photo released by the North Korean government, Vietnam's Communist Party chief Nong Duc Manh, front left, is welcomed by North Korean leader Kim Jong Il, front right, and citizens with flowers upon arrival in Pyongyang, North Korea. "Vietnam and North Korea have long had fraternal communist ties, so North Korea is familiar with the country and its officials," according to Murray Hiebert, senior associate of the Southeast Asia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File)
This is friendly turf for Kim. Even though North Korea has remained mired in Cold War isolation while Vietnam's postwar path led toward integration with the globalized economy, the two communist countries share a history of anti-imperialist struggle and ambivalent relations with common neighbor China.
"Vietnam and North Korea have long had fraternal communist ties, so North Korea is familiar with the country and its officials. North Korea would also feel confident that Vietnam's security apparatus could secure Kim's protection," Hiebert said.
There's also the bonus that a flight from Pyongyang to a meeting in Vietnam is roughly two-thirds of the six-hour flying time to Singapore, and none of it over hostile territory.
A forward-looking North Korea might learn something from Vietnam's impressive economic growth due to "bold economic reforms, proactive integration into the world economy, and excellent partnerships with strategic partners, with the U.S. and South Korea among the most important ones," Khuong said.
People are also reading…
FILE - In this July 9, 2018, file photo, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh arrive for photos before a meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hanoi, Vietnam. Vietnam's selection as the venue for the second summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is largely a matter of convenience and security, but not without bigger stakes. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool, File)
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a similar point when he visited Hanoi last July after two days of talks in North Korea.
"The leaders of Vietnam realized their country could reform, it could open up and build relationships without threatening the country's sovereignty, its independence, and its form of government," he said in a speech to Hanoi's business community. "I have a message for Chairman Kim Jong Un: President Trump believes your country can replicate this path. It's yours if you'll seize the moment."
