Trump Organisation to break ground on golf club in Vietnam amid trade talks

HANOI, May 21 — The Trump Organisation and its local partner will hold a groundbreaking ceremony today for a luxury golf resort close to Vietnam's capital Hanoi, according to invitations to the event seen by Reuters.
Vietnam's government approved the plan last week and the ceremony will be attended by US President Donald Trump's son Eric Trump, organisers said. The event comes as the South-east Asian country negotiates with Washington to avoid punitive tariffs.
Its developers have said the US$1.5 billion (RM6.41 billion) project will include when completed in 2027 three 18-hole golf courses and a residential complex, and could be followed by additional multi-billion-dollar investments.
Local authorities of the Hung Yen province, where the golf club will be built, have also invited Vietnam's leaders to the event, including the head of the ruling Communist Party To Lam, who was born in the province, according to the invitation.
It is unclear whether he will join the event. Vietnam's state news agency said Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh will participate in a groundbreaking event today in Hung Yen, without specifying for which project.
Apart from the ceremony, Eric Trump is also set to meet Ho Chi Minh City officials tomorrow to explore plans for a possible skyscraper in Vietnam's southern business hub, according to an internal schedule seen by Reuters.
'Vietnam has tremendous potential for luxurious hospitality and entertainment,' Eric Trump, who is a senior vice president of the Trump Organisation, said in October when the president's family business announced a partnership with Vietnamese real estate firm Kinhbac City.
'We are incredibly excited to enter this dynamic market.'
The strategic collaboration, whose terms are not public, 'will focus on developing 5-star hotels, championship-style golf courses, and luxurious residential estates and unparalleled amenities in Vietnam,' the consortium said in a statement in October.
It is unclear how the two partners share costs and revenues, and what conditions have been set for use of the Trump franchise.
Trade pledges
Vietnam has made multiple pledges to the White House to avoid 46% 'reciprocal' tariffs that would kick off in July after a global pause if no bilateral deal is reached.
They include lower tariffs and non-tariff barriers, an intensified fight against trade frauds and counterfeiting, and favourable conditions to Starlink, owned by Trump's close ally Elon Musk, to roll out satellite internet services in the country.
Organisers said the project in Hung Yen, a few kilometres south of Hanoi along the Red River, rapidly obtained approvals from local authorities, noting that it was the result of earlier work by Kinhbac City on the plan which preceded the announcement of the partnership with the Trump Organisation.
Trump handed over the leadership of the organisation to his children after he won his first term as US president.
The Trump Organisation has luxury golf projects, existing or under development, in countries from Indonesia to the Middle East. — Reuters

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