Shortwave Log, Northern Germany, August 2014: WRNO – “a Piece of the USA”

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1. WRNO Worldwide

WRNO Worldwide, New Orleans, was a North American shortwave radio station. It was on the air from 1982 to the early 1990s, with rock music and program slots by a number of organizations, such as Pete Bergeron‘s La Voix de la Louisiane program, featuring Cajun music, or Glenn Hauser‘s World of Radio. During the 1980s, with programs really worth listening to, WRNO might have become a heavy competitor to the Voice of America (VoA), if its signal reach had been greater.

QSL: the operators and their ham callsigns, 1987

The owner, Joseph Costello (Joe Costello III), born in or around 1941 in Algiers/New Orleans, Louisiana, became a millionaire in the media business, according to this  (source unverified) 1997 obituary in the Times Picayune. The history of the shortwave station doesn’t seem to suggest that WRNO ‘s shortwave station added greatly to his wealth, although according to this (unverified) account, it became profitable within months, . From the original rock format, the station went on to leasing airtime to religious and political broadcasters, and Costello’s heirs put the shortwave station up for sale, according to the October 1998 edition of NASB Newsletter. The sales notice also provides hints as to why WRNO would never reach an audience as sizable as VoA did – at least as of 1998, there was only one transmitter site, and a log periodic antenna oriented towards the eastern half of North America.

But Costello’s ambitions hadn’t been small. While he apparently acknowledged that the last thing they [i. e. listeners abroad] need is another station playing their local music, Costello was a fan of shortwave radio, according to this account by one of his former (unverified) employees, who also quotes him as saying that people outside America admire us and want to come here; I’m giving them a piece of the USA – a piece of the USA complementary to, rather than a competitor of, VoA, according to the same account.

WRNO is now a religious broadcaster. The DX Listening Digest of April 5, 2001 reported that

WRNO Worldwide shortwave is sold to a non-profit religious group, whose directors include a citizen of Zimbabwe and a citizen of Australia. The New Orleans operation was one of the very few attempts to create a viable commercial shortwave operation (doing CHR). It was an offshoot of WRNO-FM, and has recently been in the hands of executor and New Orleans communications attorney Ashton Hardy. Looks like the Ft. Worth-based Good News World Outreach will run WRNO Worldwide as a non-commercial proposition (Mstreet Daily Apr 5 via Lawrence rec.radio.shortwave via Lamb, Cumbre DX via DXLD)

(Most recently tuned to on July 20, 2014, 02:36 UTC, 7505 kHz.)

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2. Recent Logs, August 2014

International Telecommunication Union letter codes used in the table underneath:

AFS – South Africa; ARG – Argentina; AUT – Austria; B – Brazil; CHN – China; CLN – Sri Lanka; CUB – Cuba; D – Germany; E – Spain; F – France; GRC – Greece; IND – HOL – the Netherlands; IND – India; J – Japan; KOR – South Korea; KRE – North Korea; LTU – Lithuania; NIG – Nigeria; ROU – Romania; RRW – Rwanda; S – Sweden; SVN – Slovenia; THA – Thailand; TJK – Tajikistan; UGA – Uganda; USA – USA.

Languages (“L.”):

Am – Amharic; C – Chinese; Ca – Cantonese; E – English; F – French; G – German; Gr – Greek; Hu – Hungarian; Pan – Panaji; Pe – Persian; Po – Portuguese; R – Russian; Sp – Spanish; Sw – Swedish; T – Thai.

Many logs this time, thanks to the summer vacation.

kHz	Station	Ctry	L.	Day	GMT	S	I	O
11510	Radyoya Denge Kurdistane	F	Ku	Aug 1	17:25	5	5	4
11540	Radio Farda	CLN	Pe	Aug 1	17:30	5	5	5
6165	RHC Cuba	CUB	E	Aug 1	04:00	5	5	4
3995	HCJB Weenermoor	D	G	Aug 2	04:30	5	5	4
17860	Voice of Khmer M’Chas Srok	1)		Aug 3	11:30	5	5	4
7550	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)2)	IND	E	Aug 4	18:21	4	5	4
12020	VoA Deewa Radio	CLN	Pa	Aug 7	01:00	5	5	5
15344	RAE Buenos Aires3)	ARG	F	Aug 7	20:00	3	4	3
15344	RAE Buenos Aires	ARG	G	Aug 7	21:00	4	4	4
3905	(Dutch pirate radio)	HOL	E	Aug 9	20:15	5	5	5
13760	Voice of Korea	KRE	E	Aug 9	21:01	5	5	4
9540	IRIB Tehran	IRN	J	Aug 9	21:34	2	4	2
9570	Radio Exterior de Espana4)	E	S	Aug 9	22:00	4	3	3
6000	RHC Cuba	CUB	E	Aug 11	03:59	3	4	3
6165	RHC Cuba	CUB	E	Aug 11	04:00	4	5	4
7550	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)	IND	E	Aug 11	18:20
9540	Radio Japan5)	J	C	Aug 12	15:30	2	2	2
15235	Channel Africa	AFS	E	Aug 12	17:00	5	5	4
7550	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)	IND	E	Aug 12	17:45	5	5	4
15650	Voice of Greece6)	GRC	Gr	Aug 12	19:00	5	5	4
6165	Radio Japan	LTU	R	Aug 13	04:30	5	4	4
17770	Radio Thailand	THA	T	Aug 13	10:35	3	5	3
15160	KBS Seoul	KOR	Ko	Aug 14	09:00	4	4	4
15160	KBS Seoul	KOR	Ko	Aug 14	09:35	4	4	3
15000	WWV (NIST), Colorado	USA	E	Aug 16	12:46	2	3	2
15000	WWVH (NIST), Hawaii7)	USA	E	Aug 16	12:46	2	3	2
3995	HCJB Weenermoor	D	G	Aug 16	18:00	4	4	3
15220	China Radio International (CRI)	CHN	Hu	Aug 17	10:03	3	5	4
15440	China Radio International (CRI)	CHN	Ca	Aug 17	10:07	2	4	2
7550	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)	IND	E	Aug 17	17:40	5	5	5
4765	Radio Progreso	CUB	S	Aug 18	02:17	4	4	3
5015	Radio Miami International (RMI) / RG Stair	USA	E	Aug 18	02:22	4	4	4
5980	Channel Africa	AFS	E	Aug 18	03:06	5	5	5
5040	RHC Cuba	CUB	E	Aug 18	05:00	5	5	4
7550	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)	IND	E	Aug 18	18:15	5	5	5
11711	RAE Buenos Aires8)	ARG	E	Aug 19	02:00	4	4	4
9540	Radio Japan5)	J	C	Aug 19	15:38	2	2	2
11711	RAE Buenos Aires	ARG	E	Aug 21	02:00	5	5	4
5025	Radio Rebelde	CUB	S	Aug 21	03:00	4	3	3
4976	Radio Uganda	UGA	E	Aug 21	03:12	3	2	2
5040	RHC Cuba	CUB	S	Aug 21	03:45	5	4	4
9800	Deutsche Welle Kigali	RRW	E	Aug 21	04:30	5	4	3
15160	KBS Seoul	KOR	Ko	Aug 21	09:00	4	4	3
3775.1	DARC / DLØDL Deutschlandrundspruch	D	G	Aug 21	17:30	3	4	4
15120	Voice of Nigeria	NIG	E	Aug 22	08:03	3	4	3
15120	Voice of Nigeria9)	NIG	E	Aug 22	15:20	3	4	2
15175	AIR Delhi (All India Radio)	IND	Pan	Aug 22	15:30	3	4	3
4976	Radio Uganda	UGA	E	Aug 22	20:15	3	2	2
3995	HCJB Weenermoor	D	G	Aug 23	04:30	5	5	4
6065	Radio Nord Revival10)	S	E/ Sw	Aug 1	05:20
918	Radio Slovenia	SVN	E	Aug 26	20:30	3	3	2
15345	RAE Buenos Aires3)	ARG	G	Aug 26	21:01	4	4	4
11711	RAE Buenos Aires3)	ARG	E	Aug 28	02:00	5	5	5
10000	Observatório Nacional	B	Po	Aug 28	06:04	2	2	2
15120	Voice of Nigeria	NIG	E	Aug 28	09:00	3	5	3
15275	Deutsche Welle Kigali	RRW	Am	Aug 28	16:40	5	4	4
15275	Deutsche Welle Kigali	RRW	F	Aug 28	17:00	4	4	3
3770	DARC / DLØDL Deutschlandrundspruch	D	G	Aug 28	17:30	5	5	5
15435	RRI Bucharest	ROU	C	Aug 29	13:05	5	5	5
15542	Voice of Tibet (Norway/Tajikistan)	TJK	C	Aug 29	13:15	4	3	3
3995	HCJB Weenermoor	D	G	Aug 30	18:00	5	5	4
9800	Deutsche Welle Kigali	D	E	Aug 31	04:00	5	5	4
6155	Adventist World Radio (AWR)	AUT	F	Aug 31	04:50	5	4	4
6155	Radio Austria International (German)	AUT	G	Aug 31	05:00	5	4	4

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Footnotes

¹⁾ The transmitter site is said to be Dushanbe-Yangiyul, Tajikistan, but that’s unconfirmed by the “clandestine” station itself. The organization behind it also runs a website which seems to suggest that they are don’t like Vietnamese Cambodians, or anything Vietnamese for that matter.

²⁾ Receivers used were a Sony ICF2001D with a number of outdoor antennas, a Silver XF-900 with a built-in telescopic antenna or connected to outdoor antennas, and a Grundig Satellit 300 with a bit of wire instead of a long-gone telescopic antenna. Currently, AIR would usually come with S=5, unless your receiver is very  simple.

³⁾ Radio Argentina al Exterior (RAE) has rarely kept exactly to its scheduled frequencies (11710 and 15345 kHz) recently; deviation seems to remain within +/- 1 kHz.

⁴⁾ Radio Exterior de Espana has been a constant companion of many shortwave listeners for many decades – here in northern Germany, Spanish and English programs could be easily picked up at daytime and nighttime. For a while, they even ran a German service. New bosses (taking office on September 1) reportedly intends to scrap shortwave. REE English service hosts Alison Hughes and Justin Coe informed their listeners about a slew of rumors, from the 23^rd minute of this recording. (Found via DX Aktuell.) There’s also information on changes at REE in Glenn Hauser’s World of Radio audio magazine 1733 of August 7, 2014, from the 26^th minute – you can currently pick the 1733 edition from there.

⁵⁾ Jammed by China People’s Broadcasting Station (CPBS, aka CNR), as described in this post.

⁶⁾ The Voice of Greece may not be on air regularly.

⁷⁾ This may look confusing, but the two transmitters, with the same frequency, coexist reasonably well.

⁸⁾ See also FN ³⁾), for deviations from scheduled frequency. Not only the frequencies, but the choice of music, too, has shifted somewhat – from classical Tango to more modern songs, including some Argentine rock music. Worthwile listening, especially with reception conditions as good as currently.

⁹⁾ Fair signal, but modulation issues, as frequently the case with Voice of Nigeria. However, the program is also easily audible at times, as in the morning (previous line).

¹⁰⁾ Many things are not as dead as first reported, and this is true for Swedish shortwave broadcasting. Radio Sweden International (RSI) abandoned shortwave years ago, but once a year, Radio Nord Revival is on the air from several locations in Sweden. On August 23, there was a live broadcast, but before and after that, test broadcasts were made, on a number of frequencies as stated here. Radio Nord was an offshore commercial station in the Baltic Sea, in operation from 1961 to 1962, with an interesting (mostly American) background story. The Radio Nord Revival is apparently organized by old fans of the former offshore broadcaster.

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Related

» WRNO WW recording, E. Feaser/Youtube, of December 14 (UTC), 1983

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Related tag:

» shortwave radio

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RSF and Republican Congressman demand Sanctions against Chinese State Media

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Reporters without Borders react to Xiang Nanfu’s release

Xiang Nanfu (向南夫), a Chinese journalist, has recently been released on parole after what Reporters without Borders (RSF) suspect was a forced concession. Xiang’s “confession” was broadcast by CCTV 13, a state-run Chinese television channel targeted at a Mandarin-speaking audience beyond the PRC. According to RSF,

on 13 May, ten days after his arrest, he was shown on CCTV13 confessing to having “smeared the Party and the government”.

Announced his release yesterday, the police said he was being freed on parole “because of his poor health and above all because of a relatively good attitude in pleading guilty.”

Xiang’s forced confession was broadcast just five days after a similar “confession” by the well-known journalist Gao Yu. Broadcasting forced confessions is often used to discredit dissident news and information providers.

RSF secretary-general Christophe Deloire calls on

the European Council to adopt sanctions against CCTV13 and its executives – China Central Television CEO Hu Zhanfan, CCTV board member Jiao Li and CCTV vice-president Zhang Changming – for broadcasting these forced confession.

Xiang Nanfu had reportedly been charged with publishing “false stories” on Boxun, a dissident website, that “seriously harmed” China’s image. The BBC, in May this year, described Boxun as a website that ran sometimes thinly sourced stories.
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China Human Rights 3 Protection Act of 2014 Bill

Note: documents linked to underneath may be removed or changed – accessed and quoted from on August 29 – JR

According to Voice of Tibet (VoT), a Tibetan exile radio station based in Norway and broadcasting on shortwave from Tajikistan, U.S. Congress is considering a bill (no. 5379) that would intend to protect internationally acknowledged freedom of speech, free flow of information and and foreign journalists and media workers in China. The bill may also limit visa for high-ranking officials in China’s state media wanting to visit the US, and could revoke visa for Chinese media workers with Chinese media in the US.

A bill text as introduced on July 31 in the House of Representatives by Chris Smith (Republican) is available online. Updates should become available from here as they are coming up.

The issue of foreign journalists and media workers is addressed on page 16 of the draft, section 4: To further protect the internationally recognized right of free expression, ensure the free flow of information, and protect foreign journalists and media personnel in China.

Section 4 also addresses competitiveness (page 19). Chinese media organizations that could become targets for sanctions are listed on page 17.

The story about the bill sponsored by Smith has so far mainly been popular on dissident websites, and the apparent lack of mainstream media interest seems to suggest that the initiative won’t develop much traction in Congress.

Opinions from readers more familiar with American politics are welcome.

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Related

» State Vandalism, July 3, 2014
» Voice of Tibet (PBS), Feb 1, 2014
» The Firedrake, Mar 17, 2012
» Be more Xinhua, Oct 10, 2009

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Deutsche Welle: the Pendulum Swings back (and strikes again)

While a comparatively early report by Guanchazhe (Shanghai) came across as sort of neutral, a report by Huanqiu Shibao (the Chinese-language sister of the “Global Times”) on Monday used the Su Yutong vs Deutsche Welle story for a bit of domestic nation-building. Using purported netizen comments, Huanqiu criticizes Su for being “naive”:

“You are reporting negative news about China all day long and think Germans will like you for that? Naive! You are planning to sue Deutsche Welle for violating local labor laws? What a joke. You don’t understand Germany and German law. When you leak a company’s internal information, the company has every reason to discharge you”, some netizens said.

“你整天报道中国的负面新闻，德国人就喜欢你？幼稚! 还准备起诉德国之声违反当地劳动法？笑话。太不了解德国和德国的法律。光泄漏企业内部的信息，企业就完全有理由开除你。”有网友说。

The paper leaves much of the criticism to “netizens”, but adds some message of its own, too. According to a BBC survey [probably Globescan], China’s image in Germany had been deteriorating for a decade, and 76 percent of Germans currently held a negative view of China, writes Huanqiu. That journalists like Su Yutong, from important positions, were blackening China’s name had something to do with the country’s negative image. When Chinese people badmouthed other Chinese people, ordinary people abroad tended to believe them.

We, too, hate some dark phenomena in our country, but we also hope and believe our motherland will improve. Reasonable overseas Chinese people will be happy and proud about China’s economic construction and development during the past thirty years. China has its shortcomings and you can criticize them, but not with a maximum zoom, and opposition against everything.

我们痛恨自己国家的一些阴暗现象，但更希望并坚信，我们的祖国会越来越好。任何一个有良知的海外华人，都会对中国这30多年来的经济建设发展感到万分的庆幸与骄傲。中国有缺点可以批评，但不能无限放大，更不能逢中必反。

The article also describes the development of Sino-German trade and adds that during the sanctions on and from Russia, Germany’s economy had shrunk by 0.2 percent during the second quarter this year. And using comments on overseas-Chinese social media, Huanqiu suggests that “constant negative headlines at Deutsche Welle about China wouldn’t help bilateral cooperation”.

The Asia-Pacific Committee of German Business (APA) would probably agree. When German chancellor Angela Merkel visited China during summer, the APA had recommendations for the two heads of government, Merkel and Li Keqiang, concerning a better climate for Chinese investment in Germany. Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) reported:

It was “the common task of governments and companies on both sides to promote a good reputation of Chinese companies in Germany”, the recommendations, on hand at dpa newsagency in Beijing on Tuesday [July 8], say. This was about a “fair and accurate” presentation. Background [of these recommendations?] is Chinese criticism of German media which “irresponsibly and inaccurately report about Chinese human rights and political issues”, a position paper still in progress says.

APA chairman Hubert Lienhard, talking to journalists, resolutely denied the existence of this paragraph in the raft. However, only a week ago, a draft of the paper containing this criticism circulated in the German embassy in Beijing. Accusations like these were, however, not adopted in the recommendations to the two heads of government, recommendations the APA commission does not want to publish. […]

The APA doesn’t need to be “behind” the most recent events at Deutsche Welle, and if the links are as crude as suggested both by Huanqiu Shibao and some of Su Yutong’s supporters remains an open question. But there seems to be a trend towards cozying up to Beijing – and the pendulum that hit Zhang Danhong in 2008, and four more of her colleagues at the DW Chinese department in 2010 on its way to more “China-unfriendly” coverage, now seems to have hit Su Yutong, on its way back to more “China-friendly” coverage.

“Bild-Zeitung”: Matthias von Hein to be replaced

Germany’s biggest tabloid, the Bild-Zeitung, has published a notice in its newsticker at 19:22 UTC (21:22 local daylight saving time), quoting a statement of DW-spokesman Johannes Hoffmann of today. Hoffman is quoted as saying that Deutsche Welle would remain “a voice of freedom”, and that there would be no change in the station’s China coverage.

Head of the Chinese department, Matthias von Hein will be replaced in September, but that was a coincidence, “Bild” quotes Hoffmann.

Von Hein had been replaced as head of the Chinese department in 2008, too, but returned to the position in January 2012.

The wide coverage is similar to that of Zhang Danhong‘s case in 2008, but in marked contrast to 2010/11 when four editors at Deutsche Welle’s Chinese department lost their jobs. The German press remained widely silent three to four years ago.

Deutsche Welle: Su Yutong’s Dismissal

I focused on a German blog today, concerning latest developments at Deutsche Welle’s Chinese department. So if you can read German, there’s something to read there.  (And if you can’t, maybe a translation machine will make some sense of it.)

Apart from the New York Times, German news magazine Der Spiegel, the BBC’s Mandarin service and Guanchazhe (Shanghai) also reported about Su Yutong getting the sack.

Does Deutsche Welle work like a Musical Request Show?

One could get this impression. In 2010/2011, four Deutsche Welle editors were reportedly fired for being too CCP- or too China-friendly. Granted, the official reasons cited were different. Now, Su Yutong, a blogger and an editor with Deutsche Welle, has gotten the sack – her contract ends in 2015 and won’t be renewed, reports the New York Times.

The paper quotes Deutsche Welle spokesman as saying that Su had tweeted about internal issues, in a way that no company in the world would tolerate. But the internal affairs look interesting indeed. Because this time, it appears that this time, members of the DW Chinese department would be under pressure for not being friendly enough.

As is frequently the case, Su Yutong’s contract with Deutsche Welle wasn’t permanent, which makes it easy to get rid of unwanted or no-longer-wanted employees once their contracts expire. I wrote about this issue and the cases of quasi-employees at DW in some deteail in June last year, when Zhu Hong, one of the two former employees of the DW Chinese department who lost their jobs in 2010/11, lost her case at the Federal Labor Court – see second half of the post.

Just a reminder to myself that I’ll need to read this closer tomorrow:

New York Times, August 21, German Broadcaster fires Chinese Blogger.

Many thanks to the reader who drew my attention to the article.

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Related

» Chronological Link Collection, Nov 2008 – Febr 2012
» Helmut Schmidt/Frank Sieren, March 1, 2012

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How Logical, Mr. Palmer!

When business is going fine, CCP cadres are partners. When it’s going less well, they are mongrels [who] shoot their own people.

Dempsey Visit: China People’s Broadcasting Station explains US-Vietnamese Partnership

Huanqiu Shibao had a rendition on a China People’s Broadcasting Station (CPBS, aka China National Radio) on Sunday. The following is a translation of the rendition.

Main Link: http://world.huanqiu.com/article/2014-08/5108330.html

China People’s Broadcasting Station Net (CPBS Net), Beijing, August 17 – According to the Voice of China’s “CPBS News”, the war that lasted for twenty years, from 1955 to 1975, gave both America lasting pain. After the end of the war, the two countries started opposing each other for twenty years, until the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1995.

央广网北京8月17日消息 据中国之声《央广新闻》报道，1955年到1975年，历经20年的越战给美越两国人民造成了永久的伤痛。越战后，美越两国开始了长达20年的对抗，直到1995年，两国才正式建立外交关系。

But after a family feud of half a century, and during the nineteen years of U.S.-Vietnamese relations that followed, tremendous changes have taken place. Just this month, on August 13, and for the first time after 43 years, an American Chief of Staff, Martin Dempsey, visited Vietnam, the highest-level military visiting Vietnam. Also, America will remove some parts of the arms embargo that had been in place for thirty years. Some Analysts believe that the warming up [in the two countries’ relations] is food for thought. [Voice of China’s] “Global Mandarin Broadcasting Network” America observer Yu Hao explains:

然 而，这长达半个多世纪的“家仇国恨”，在随后的十几年美越交往中发生着翻天覆地的变化。就在本月13号，时隔43周年后，美军参谋长联席会议主席登普西访 问越南，成为越战后首访越南的美国最高军事长官;而历经30年后，美国也将解除对越南部分武器禁运。有分析称，美越此时的“暧昧”关系值得深思。《全球华 语广播网》美国观察员余浩介绍：

What is the reason for the U.S. to lift the arms embargo against Vietnam right now? Most American media are looking at this with the background of rebalancing American forces towards Asia-Pacific, and Dempsey also emphasized in Vietnam that America didn’t want Vietnam to choose between the two big countries of America and China.^*) In recent years, both America and Vietnam have become wary about China and have strengthened military cooperation. One by one, American secretary of defense and secretary of state visited Vietnam, even exploring the possibility of American warships calling at Cam Ranh Bay, and this time, Dempsey hinted that the arms embargo against Vietnam could be lifted, and one could say that this was boosting U.S.-Vietnamese military cooperation. The ultimate success depends on U.S. Congress approval. However, during this year, many members of Congress have visited Vietnam, like Senate heavyweight John McCain who visited only a few days ago and said that at the earlierst, a partial removal of the arms embargo could be achieved by September this year.

余 浩：为何美国在这个时候要解除对越南的武器禁运呢？美国的媒体大多是将其放在美国亚太再平衡和南海主权争端中越关系紧张的大背景下来观察，登普西在越南也 强调，美国并没有让越南在美中两个大国之间进行选择。近年来美国和越南这两个对中国同样有戒心的国家强化军事合作关系，美国国防部长、国务卿相继访问越 南，甚至探讨美军军舰在金兰湾停靠的可能性，登普西此次放风解除对越南武器禁运，可谓是给美越军事合作加油打气，最后能否成功还取决于美国国会是否批准， 不过今年以来美国议员密集访问越南，重量级参议院麦凯恩前几天刚刚访问过越南，并且称解除对越武器禁运，最快有可能于9月份部分实现。

While America and Vietnam established diplomatic relations, military exchange between the two sides has only been superficial, but when it comes to trade cooperation, it is almost comprehensively in full bloom, having reached leapfrogging style.

虽然1995年美越建交，但双方的军事交流还仅仅是浅尝辄止，不过，说到双方的经贸合作，几乎是全面开花，实现了跨越式的发展。

In 1994, one year before the establishment of diplomatic relations, U.S. president Clinton lifted the economic embargo against Vietnam, and the two countries’ trade grew quickly. On December 10, 2001, the U.S.-Vietnamese bilateral trade agreement came into effect, and since then, trade relations have boomed. From January to July this year, Vietnam has exported goods to the U.S. totalling 16 billion U.S. dollars, a year-on-year increase of 24 percent. A forecast by the American Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam says that bilateral trade relations will reach 336 billion Dollars in 2014. Currently, Vietnam’s exports to America are the third-largest among ASEAN states, second ony to Malaysia’s and Thailand’s.

1994年暨美越建交前一年，美国总统克林顿宣布取消对越南经济的禁运政 策，当年两国的双边贸易便实现了快速增长，2001年12月10日，美越双边贸易协定生效，自此，美越经贸关系发展迅猛，今年1到7月，越南对美国货物出 口额为160亿美元，同比增长24%，越南美国商会预测，2014年越美双边贸易额将达到336亿美元，目前越南对美出口额在东盟国家中位居第三，仅次于 马来西亚和泰国。

Looking back at the Vietnam war, and exactly because of that war, America implemented a comprehensive arms embargo against Vietnam as early as in 1984. PLA National Defense University professor Li Li explains:

回首越南战争，正是由于这场战争，早在1984年，美国便对越南实施了全面的武器禁运。中国国防大学李莉教授介绍说：

In 1984, America officially passed this kind of law, banning all further supplies of military equipment. This included two levels, one about military high-tech, the supply of which wasn’t only prohibited for American companies, but also the entire European Union, countries the EU had relations with, had to join the ranks. This included some important advanced material technology, some electronic devices, or high-precision lathes the supply of which wasn’t allowed either. Adding to this, the definition of combat-class equipment is really broad, including missile equipment, these things are untouchable. It was a comprehensive limitation, and done very thoroughly.

李莉： 1984年美国是正式通过这样一个法律，禁止以后再继续向越南民主主义人民共和国出售所有相关军事装备的物品，包括两个层面，一个就是军事高技术，他不仅 自己不允许向越南提供，此外要求整个欧盟，包括所有和他有关系的国家，都参与到这个行列当中，包括新的一些重要的材料技术，包括一些信息技术、一些电子仪 器、精密的车床加工的这些技术都不允许提供。 此外，就是战斗类的装备是非常宽泛的，涉及陆海空，包括导弹类的装备，这些东西更是碰都不允许碰的，是全面的一个限制，做的是非常彻底。

By following two previous U.S. secretaries of defense and visiting Vietnam, too, joint chief Dempsey almost stirred a “Vietnam-mania”. According to one point of view, American intervention in the South China Sea is no longer just a posture, but some kind of real action. When secretary of state Kerry had just left Vietnam, Dempsey entered, so how come that currently, high American officials, one after another, visit Vietnam, especially a high-level military official? Xu Liping, director of the Chinese Academy of Social Studies’ China Network for the Asia-Pacific Research analyzes:

继此前两任美国防长访问越南，参谋长联席会议主席登普西也前往河内，美 国军方似乎掀起了“越南热”。有观点认为：美国对南海的干预，不再仅仅是一种姿态，而是一种实际的行动。美国国务卿克里前脚刚离开越南，登普西就紧随其 后，那么美国高官为什么会选择此时陆续访越，尤其是美军方高层？中国社科院亚太研究所文华研究室主任许利平分析：

I think that one should say that Dempsey’s visit to Vietnam is an important part of a close U.S.-Vietnamese relationship. Because we know that last year, Vietnam’s state chairman Truong Tan Sang visited the U.S., and Vietnamese-U.S. relations were raised to a level of comprehensive partnership. This is a very important point of view, because as we know, America’s relations with south-east Asian nations like Indonesia have also been raised to the level of comprehensive partnership. One could say that this is a new form of American relations with Asian countries. To strengthen economic relations with them is also an important part of the American rebalancing strategy towards Asia-Pacific, so I believe that Dempsey’s visit is another aspect of this component.

许利平：我想登 普西访问越南的话应该来说是越南和美国密切关系的一个重要组成部分，因为我们知道，去年越南国家主席张晋创也访问了美国，把越南和美国的关系提升为全面伙 伴关系，是一个非常重要的转折点，因为我们知道美国和东南亚的国家比如说印度尼西亚也提升为全面伙伴关系，应该来说也是美国和亚洲国家一个新型的伙伴关 系，强化这些亚洲国家在经济上面的联系，也是美国亚太再平衡战略的一个重要的组成部分，所以我觉得登普西访问也是这种组成部分的一个方面。

The highlight of Dempsey’s Vietnam visit is the strengthening of the two countries’ military cooperation, and a focus on maritime security. Some experts believe that this could put pressure on China.

登普西此次访越，亮点是两国合力加强军事合作，聚焦海事安全。有分析称，这将给中国施加压力。

Xu Liping: One should say that this is a breakthrough in U.S.-Vietnamese relations. America hopes that lifting the arms embargo will increase American arms exports which is, in fact, important for the U.S. economy. From a Vietnamese perspective, all arms imported by Vietnam have come from Russia, and that makes it a rather single market, and if America lifts the arms embargo, I guess this would increase Vietnam’s defense capabilities. Both sides can thus take what they need. Thirdly, and personally, I believe that of course, America’s strengthening of relations with Vietnam also includes considerations about the South China Sea. In fact, America wants to turn Vietnam into a chess piece for disputes with China, but their cooperation with Vietnam on the South China Sea issue is limited because on the one hand, Vietnam still has many misgivings about the U.S., and on the other hand, America, domestically, isn’t too relaxed about Vietnam either. So I think the cooperation between the two will be of a rather limited kind.

徐利 平：这应该来说是美越关系的一个突破，美国希望解除武器禁令扩大美国的武器出口，实际上也是对美国经济的吃紧，对越南方面来讲，由于历史上的原因越南一直 的进口武器都是来自于俄罗斯，应该来说市场是比较单一的，如果美国武器的禁运的解禁我估计会提高越南的这种国防能力，双方是一种各取所需，第三，我个人认 为美国强化和越南的这种关系，当然也有南海方面的考虑，实际上美国也希望把越南作为中国在南海争端方面的一个棋子，但是实际上美国在南海问题上跟越南的合 作我觉得他是有限度的，因为一方面的话越南对美国还是有很多的疑虑的，第二个美国国内也并不是对越南很放心，所以双方之间我觉得是一种有限度的合作吧。

We have noted that year-on-year, Vietnam’s exports to the U.S. have risen by 24 percent from January to July. In these contacts with a superpower, and in political or economic terms, Vietnam hardly incurs any disadvantages. What do you believe is Vietnam’s mentality in this commitment to contacts with America – what are the values they are choosing?

我们注意到，越南今年1至7月对美国出口同比增长24%，在与超级大国交往中，越南似乎在政治和经济上都没有吃亏，您认为越南与美国的交往秉承什么样的思路和价值选择？

The fact that America and Vietnam establish this kind of comprehensive partnership, that they strengthen economic cooperation and that both sides take what they need is part of a Vietnamese objective to implement a rebalancing strategy in its foreign relations, in its diplomacy. Vietnam’s actual overall goal is to establish this kind of strategic partnersip with all great powers. In fact, Vietnam’s foreign ministry has said that it wants to establish strategic partnerships with all five permanent members of the UN Security Council, but America remains as a scond choice, and to establish this kind of comprehensive partnership and rebalancing is something Vietnam hopes to use to increase its regional influence. Actually, Vietnam doesn’t want to side with just one great power, and I believe that this, too, is an important part of Vietnam’s strategy of balancing great powers.

许利平：美国和越南建立这种全面伙伴关 系，加强经济的这种合作，各取所需，实际上越南的对外外交的一个思路是要实现一种对外的这种平衡的战略，实际上他的总体战略是要和所有的大国建立这种伙伴 关系，越南的外交部其实已经提出了要和五大常任理事国都要建立这种战略伙伴关系，但是和美国只是退而求其次，建立了这种全面的伙伴的关系，实际上越南是希 望通过这种大国的平衡的战略来突出越南在这个地区的影响力，实际上越南也不可能想要任何的大国一边倒，我觉得这也是越南的这个大国平衡战略的一个重要的组 成部分。

An hour and twenty minutes after publication, 44 Huanqiu readers had expressed anger at the article (or what it describes), four readers are delighted, one is bored, and 22 feel that what they’ve read is ridiculous.

Huanqiu, a paper and website with a rather nationalist readership, also reported on Martin Demsey’s visit during the past days, all in a rather noncommittal mode – something also frequently practised by Chinese media during the 1980s/1990s when covering (controversial) foreign issues, but quite different from the often stirring ways Huanqiu articles were written around 2008/2012.

____________

Note(s):

^*) “to choose between being a friend of the United States and a friend of China”, AFP, Aug 16, 2014

Similar statement:

“The Cold War is over. It ended. Russia’s not our enemy. The people of the Czech Republic don’t have to choose between being a friend of the United States or a friend with Russia, you can be both. We don’t believe in a zero sum world,” President Bush said today in Prague

Wall Street Journal, June 5, 2007

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Related

» Help to counter China, USA Today, Aug 18, 2014
» US urged to lift ban, VoV, Aug 14,2014
» 首次访问越南, Huanqiu, Aug 14, 2014
» Australia-US ties, BBC News, Aug 13, 2014
» 王毅晤越南副总理, Huanqiu, Aug 9, 2014
» Low-class nationalism, May 19, 2014
» Vo Nguyen Giap, October 4, 2013
» Giving away the Store, US News, July 23, 2013
» Syria & South China Sea, Aug 5, 2012
» Nothing to deploy, July 30, 2012
» Don’t get burned, June 21, 2012
» Communiqué, Oct 16, 2011
» Five Questions to a Hegemon, Aug 18, 2010
» Threat of an Invasion, April 29, 2009