This paper examines Vietnam?s security policy with a focus on its omnidirectional military
diplomacy. The concept of omnidirectional military diplomacy combines the ideas of omnidirectional
diplomacy?the basic foreign policy of the Communist Party of Vietnam and the Vietnamese
government?and the military diplomacy of the Ministry of National Defense and the Vietnam
People?s Army. Under Vietnam?s omnidirectional military diplomacy, in order to build multilayered
and stable relationships with all countries, not only the diplomatic institutions but also relevant
military organizations participate in broadly-defined diplomatic activities through dialogue and
cooperation, thereby playing a part in Vietnam?s omnidirectional diplomacy. In the area of national
defense policy, Vietnam pursues stability not only of bilateral relations but also of the strategic
environment of the region as a whole by engaging in confidence building among relevant military
organizations for the security of Vietnam, a relatively small country. Vietnam?s omnidirectional
military diplomacy seeks to address the traditional security issue of sovereignty over the South China
Sea by directly applying the general goal of military diplomacy, namely: improving bilateral and
multilateral relations as well as the regional strategic environment through cooperative confidence-
building efforts, primarily in nontraditional areas. It attempts to keep China?s excessive influence
from reaching Vietnam by deepening the country?s relationships with the United States and other
major powers in the region. Vietnam?s omnidirectional military diplomacy principally covers the
United States, Russia, India and Japan, and also places importance on the utilization of ASEAN?s
multilateral frameworks for security cooperation.