‘Caught in the middle’: Effects on and reactions of Vietnamese timber exporters in the context of US-China economic sanctions
研究美中经济制裁对越南木材出口商的双重影响，发现企业采取四种策略应对挑战与机遇，对理解第三方国家企业如何应对制裁有参考价值。
The impact of primary sanctions on firms has been well-documented in the literature. However, the impact of secondary sanctions on businesses in third countries and their strategic responses has been under-researched. This study explores this issue by investigating Vietnamese timber exporters in the context of US-China economic sanctions. Taking a case study approach, interviews were conducted with key government and industry officials as well as firms in Vietnam. Using the key concepts from the realism school of thought and the stakeholder theory as the analytical lenses, we found that third countries’ businesses encountered both positive and negative impacts of the sanctions and employed four strategies, namely aligning, aspiring, influencing, and insulating to respond to the challenges and opportunities these sanctions presented. This study contributes to identifying the notion of temporality and explaining how and when third-country firms intertwine both reactive and anticipatory strategies.