Vietnam demands Australia halt circulation of coins with flag of defunct regime

Vietnam opposes Australia minting A$2 coins featuring the flag of the defunct Republic of Vietnam and requests the latter cease circulating the coins, Pham Thu Hang, deputy spokesperson of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said on Thursday.

Vietnam absolutely protests the act, which is inappropriate to the positive trends of the Vietnam-Australia strategic partnership, Hang added.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has discussed the issue with Australia and suggested preventing similar cases in the future, the deputy spokesperson said.

The Royal Australian Mint and the Australia Post on April 6 issued A$2 coins to commemorate 50 years of the end of Australian troops' involvement in the war in Vietnam in 1973.

However, the coins feature two yellow flags with three red stripes each of the Republic of Vietnam, a regime that no longer exists in Vietnam now.

The two Australian firms minted 5,000 gold-plated and 80,000 silver-plated coins and sold them at A$80 (US$53.9) and A$15 ($10.1) each, respectively. 

Vietnam and Australia established their diplomatic relations on February 26, 1973. 

The two countries elevated their ties to comprehensive partnership in 2009 and to strategic partnership in 2018.

The two sides reached a consensus to upgrade their relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership at the right time during a visit to Vietnam last month by Australian Governor-General David Hurley.

Bilateral trade between Vietnam and Australia totaled some A$23.5 billion ($15.6 billion) in 2022, making Australia Vietnam’s seventh-largest trade partner.

Meanwhile, Vietnam became Australia’s 10th-biggest trade partner.

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