“Iwarmly welcome Vietnam’s General Secretary, Nguyen Phu Trong, on hishistoric trip to the United States—the first ever by a VietnameseGeneral Secretary. This visit demonstrates the growing strength of theUS-Vietnam partnership as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of thenormalization of relations between our countries,” he wrote in thestatement released on July 7 (Washington time).
“Even for thoseof us who worked to normalize our relationship twenty years ago, theprogress that our nations have made together has been astounding,” hesaid.
Since 1995, annual US-Vietnam trade has increased from less than 500 million USD to 36 billion USD last year.
“The United States and Vietnam are better positioned than ever to build on this progress,” he affirmed.
Hesaid “Vietnam is an important emerging partner with which the UnitedStates shares strategic and economic interests, including strengtheningan open regional trading order, maintaining a favorable balance of powerin the Asia-Pacific region, and upholding long-standing principles ofworld order, such as freedom of the seas and peaceful resolution ofinternational disputes.”
“The United States and Vietnam alsoshare a deep commitment to the peace and security of the Asia-Pacificregion. This is especially critical as China continues the reclamationand militarization of land features in the South China Sea and againdeploys the Haiyang Shiyou 981 (HD-981) oil rig in waters near Vietnam.”
Inconclusion he wrote “The past twenty years have witnessed a remarkableadvancement in our relationship greater than anyone could have hopedfor. I look forward to meeting General Secretary Trong this week as ourtwo countries seek to continue to build a relationship built on a sharedvision for a peaceful and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.”-VNA