Sorry, Barbie, you are persona non grata in Vietnam.
Because of its use of a map showing territory in the South China Sea that both China and Vietnam claim as their own, Greta Gerwig’s film “Barbie” has been banned in Vietnam, and several other southeast Asian countries may follow suit, potentially harming the movie’s regional revenues.
The Southeast Asian nation has banned the release of the film over what that country’s government claims in an endorsement of China’s illicit claim over as much as 90 percent of the South China Sea.
An international tribunal at The Hague ruled in 2016 that China has no legal basis for its claims, but Beijing has yet to concede to the ruling.
Instead, China sought to dominate the waters by carrying out aggressive incursions and developing military installations in the region.
