Vladimir Putin continues Asian public relations blitz in Vietnam visit
Russian president is embraced by two communist leaders as he signs pacts in Hanoi
Russian president Vladimir Putin said he wanted to build a “reliable security architecture” in the Asia-Pacific region during a state visit to Vietnam yesterday, part of a trip to Asia seen as a show of defiance to the West.
A day after signing a mutual defence agreement with North Korea, Putin received a 21-gun salute at a military ceremony in Vietnam, was embraced by two of its communist leaders and lavishly praised by one of them.
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