UK & VN

[huy.duong@ctsu.ox.ac.uk]

Dear anh Tuan,

I think Britain can't be bothered to have its own aims
in SEA; when it can be bothered to have any aim at all,
it uses the American ones. The most assertive act of British 
politics that involved VN since WWII is Margaret Thacher's 
staunch support for the Cambodian resistance coalition that 
included the Khmer Rouge. And the most inovative one is the 
first repatriation of Vietnamese refugees.

Sadly, SEA is not prominent in British politics. With the handling
back of HK and the rift with Malaysia this will get worse. If Burma
becomes a reasonably respectable member of the international
community and British interests grow there, it might change.

It is hard to know what a Labour government will be like; it is
hard to detect any principle in Tony Blair's campaigning.

The polls predict a Labour victory, but polls traditionally
underestimate the Conservatives' chances. 

If Labour wins, it's because people are fed up with the Conservatives,
not because of Labour's manifesto.

Huy