The country
made several big-ticket naval item purchases, such as two Gepard-class frigates in 2006, six Kilo-class submarines in 2009, and two SIGMA-9814 frigates in 2013. Between 2008 and 2016, Vietnam
acquired eight Molniya-class guided missile fast attack crafts. In 2013, it also
purchased 12 Sukhoi Su-30MK2 fighter jets for the air force with an eye on the maritime disputes. After the United States lifted its arms embargo in 2016, Vietnam acquired three U.S. Hamilton-class cutters for its Coast Guard. Vietnam is also
negotiating to buy F16s from the United States to better monitor the South China Sea.
Vietnam’s naval and air force modernization came at the expense of modernizing the army, whose backbone
consists of 1970s-era main battle tanks and outdated artillery. Hanoi tried to purchase T-80 tanks from Russia, but the negotiations
failed due to a lack of funding. In 2017, it
ordered 64 Russian T-90S tanks and received the delivery in 2019. Despite efforts to upgrade and refurbish, the army’s equipment is generally so outdated that some scholars
regard its assets as “a Cold War time capsule.”