How Vietnam went from pandemic hero to COVID shambles

Leaders assumed that early successes meant vaccination programs could wait

August 23, 2021 05:00 JST | Vietnam

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, pictured in Hanoi on Feb. 1: Chinh's team knows the boom-bust cycle must end. © AP

William Pesek is an award-winning Tokyo-based journalist and author of "Japanization: What the World Can Learn from Japan's Lost Decades."

Few economies have pivoted from an inspiring success story to a cautionary tale faster than Vietnam.

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