ABSTRACT
In December 1986, Vietnam’s foreign policy took a new course when the Sixth National Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party (VCP) adopted a strategy of doi moi, or renovation. Although the new approach was primarily directed towards reform and liberalisation of the national economy, it had decisive implications for Vietnam’s foreign policy outlook. The political elite concluded that the international isolation of Vietnam following its occupation of Cambodia in 1979 had significantly contributed to the country’s deep socio-economic crisis. The success of doi moi would largely depend on a radical change in foreign policy.
