Mexico is seen as the "nearshoring" country of the United States in North America, and has become an important base for American manufacturing in recent years. However, Chinese companies have smartly capitalized on the growth of investment in countries such as Vietnam, circumventing regulations and high tariffs by moving the ** chain to the Southeast Asian region. In order to conduct security screenings in Mexico, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Mexican Finance Minister Delao reached an agreement aimed at strengthening cooperation on foreign investment screening. Although China is not mentioned in the agreement, it is clear that the United States is working with Mexico to help it increase its scrutiny of foreign investments to address potential risks. This marks the beginning of the U.S. "de-risking" strategy, which not only locks down high-tech sectors and censors homegrown**, but also strengthens security scrutiny of nearshoring national investment and**.
In recent years, Vietnam has become the biggest beneficiary of China's manufacturing spillover, playing an important role in processing and manufacturing, and re-exporting**. In April, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Vietnam, and in September, U.S. Biden personally visited and elevated U.S.-Vietnam relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. This makes the level of relations between the United States and Vietnam theoretically comparable to that of China and Vietnam. The early high-profile actions of the United States did not result in substantial cooperation in Vietnam, but they actually laid the foundation for the subsequent strategic layout. Drawing on the success in Mexico, the U.S. has a good chance of replicating a similar strategy in Vietnam to boost investment and security scrutiny. However, the competition between China and the United States in Vietnam is not as easy as in Mexico, because Vietnam has an important strategic position in terms of geographical location and economic ties with China. In addition, if the United States is replaced, the continuity of policy will also be challenged. So, in a year or two, we may be able to see the outcome of this competitive battle.
The U.S. strategy of "de-risking" is actually an extension and transformation of China's strategy of decoupling and disconnection. Although it appears to be different in degree and in a different way, there is no substantive difference in essence, it is just a clever manipulation by the Americans in this game of words. China has achieved great success in manufacturing spillover and processing and manufacturing transfer, and Southeast Asia has become an important part of China's manufacturing. Faced with the cleverness and determination of Chinese companies, the United States has to admit that decoupling and breaking the chain is unrealistic, and turn to looking for strategic variables. By stepping up investment and security vetting of nearshoring countries, the U.S. seeks to reduce economic risks. However, it will take time to see whether such a strategy can be successfully implemented. Vietnam, as a key beneficiary and competitor, will play an important role between China and the United States.
The Vietnam rivalry between China and the United States shows an important change in the world's best pattern. Although the U.S. de-risking strategy has certain difficulties and challenges, its impact on the Chinese market and the first chain cannot be ignored. For China, this is a moment of both opportunities and challenges. Chinese enterprises need to constantly adjust and adapt to changes in the international environment, pursue technological innovation and improve competitiveness. At the same time, in cooperation with Vietnam and other countries, it is necessary to keep a clear head and raise the security awareness of foreign investment. As competition escalates, we need to always be vigilant and respond to changes with an open mind to safeguard China's development.