One of Vietnam’s biggest airlines, Vietjet, has been ordered by a UK court not to obstruct the repossession of several of its jets by the lessor FW Aviation, Reuters is reporting.

This is part of an ongoing dispute between the carrier and lessor FW Aviation–a subsidiary of the UK’s FitzWalter Capital–in which it’s alleged Vietjet failed to meet its lease commitments. Vietjet is being sued by the UK firm for US$191 million.

The crux of this specific issue–the export of the aircraft–is that FW Aviation has been unable to recover the jets which are being held in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. This is being prevented by Vietnam’s General Department of Custom which FW Aviation alleges has been unduly influenced by Vietjet.

Reuters goes on to suggest that Vietnam may be in breach of the 2001 Cape Town Convention which governs aircraft leasing around the world and that breaching the convention can lead to higher financing rates.

This is particularly interesting as Vietnam seeks to engage more broadly with the wider world. Specifically, simply signing onto international agreements is not necessarily enough to assuage the concerns of foreign firms. More critical is that firms need to be assured that the terms of those agreements will be fulfilled.