Vietnam could be invaded for a second time by the United States and its allies, a leaked report has claimed. A military document, titled “The Second US Invasion Plan,” details how Vietnam sees the US promotion of “freedom and democracy” as a plot to maintain power in the region. 

The assessment, leaked by the human rights group Project88 on Tuesday (February 3), suggests the Vietnamese military is very suspicious of US intentions and fears that an attack would be ordered as soon as Vietnam refuses to join their “plan to encircle and contain China“. Tomahawk missiles, drones, ship artillery and helicopters would all be deployed under an imaginary scenario detailed in the report. The plan comes just over 50 years after the end of the Vietnam War, which saw the deaths of over 1.3 million people, and just weeks after Donald Trump threatened to invade Greenland by force.

If the invasion fails, the US may deploy “biochemical and tactical nuclear weapons” against Vietnam. After the missiles and drones, a naval attack involving Navy and Marine Corps assets, supported by infantry, strategic bombers and allied navies, would follow.

“While there is currently little risk of a war against Vietnam, due to the US’ belligerent nature, we need to be vigilant to prevent the US and its allies from ‘creating a pretext’ to launch a war of aggression against our country,” the report reads, according to The Sun.

“The US and allies could fully exploit the geographic and natural features of Vietnam’s vast seas and long coastlines, with the superior strength of its navy, to conduct military operations against our country.”

The document ends by urging Vietnam’s military to revise its combat plans to prepare for such contingencies.

The leak comes amid heightened tensions in the Arctic over Mr Trump’s call for ‍US control over Greenland, citing national security concerns related to Russia and China. Last month, the US president said: “We are going to do something in Greenland, whether they like it or not, because if we don’t do it, Russia or China will take over Greenland, and we’re not going to have Russia or China as a neighbour”. However, Mr Trump has since backed down on using military force, following strong rebuttals from the US’s NATO allies.

Project88 said it obtained the plan from a reliable source and that it had independently verified that the document existed.

Ben Swanton, co-director of Project88, said the analysis “makes clear that Vietnam’s undisclosed national security policy is based on at least four key tenets: the US is a threat, the Indo-Pacific strategy is a new form of colonial domination, human rights and democracy promotion is an attempt to undermine the CPV, and Vietnam is linked to a shared fate with China.

“These positions overturn more than a decade of America’s Vietnam policy, which was buttressed by uncritical media coverage, and which was premised on the idea that Vietnam could be courted to join an anti-China coalition.”