President Joe Biden is set to arrive in Vietnam on Sunday on a mission to bolster US influence, but the heavy emphasis on countering rival China will likely confine human rights concerns to the margins.
Biden will become the latest in an unbroken line of US presidents since Bill Clinton in 2000 to visit the Southeast Asian former foe.
The underlying goal will be much the same as during Biden's time at the G20 summit in New Delhi this week: to shore up support against China's growing influence.
