3 Takeaways From Putin’s Trip to Vietnam

President Vladimir V. Putin’s state visit to North Korea appeared to have a singular focus on military matters: The two sides dramatically revived a Cold War-era mutual defense agreement. A day later, in Vietnam, the Russian leader was far less provocative.

Vietnam values its relations with the United States, which would be jeopardized if Mr. Putin were to make fiery statements about Washington on its soil. So even though Vietnam and Russia have deep military relations and a shared communist history, leaders in Hanoi instead focused talks with Mr. Putin on boosting ties in areas like trade, education, energy, and science and technology. The Russian leader kept his formal remarks muted.

There were no major breakthroughs, but the show of unity with Vietnam was designed to give Mr. Putin a veneer of international legitimacy at a time of increasing isolation in the West.

Here are three key takeaways from his visit.

It was a diplomatic show of sorts for Mr. Putin.

Unlike North Korea, which is a pariah in the West, Vietnam has been courted by the United States in its effort to contain China’s growing global influence. Within the past year alone, Hanoi has also hosted President Biden and China’s top leader, Xi Jinping.

Mr. Putin’s visit to Vietnam is part of an effort by the Russian leader to show that despite Western attempts at isolating him over his invasion of Ukraine, he is still accepted by world leaders. His trip late last year to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, two key American partners in the Middle East, underscored the point.