Vietnam considers the US a leading partner

Senator Webb congratulated Mr. Truong Tan Sang on his election as State President while saying that he is very happy to re-visit Vietnam for the second time this year, affirming his ambition to continue his contributions to strengthening relations between the two countries.

Before visiting Vietnam, Mr. Webb had made tours of Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia where he witnessed their appreciation for Vietnam’s positive contributions to dealing with regional and international issues.

Mr. Webb said he and the US Senate always pay attention to and strongly support multilateral and peaceful solutions for disputes in the East Sea and cooperation in the sustainable use of water resources from the Mekong River for the sake of peace, stability and development in the region. Therefore, the US and ASEAN nations need to promote collaboration in economics, trade, culture and security.

In separate speeches, both State President Sang and Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, spoke highly of the US senator’s visit to Vietnam and talked of their appreciation for Mr. Webb’s positive contributions to promoting bilateral relations and his keen interest in peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region, as well as the East Sea issue and the greater Mekong sub-region (GMS).

Deputy PM Phuc praised the US Senate for approving a resolution on the East Sea situation under Senator Jim Webb’s proposal while expressing the hope that both countries will enhance cooperation in various fields.

Vietnam continues to pursue the foreign policy of openness, multilateralisation, and diversification of relations and active and comprehensive international integration. This has been proven by the fact that Vietnam-US relations have progressed in various fields such as, economics, trade, education, healthcare, science and technology, humanitarian assistance, and national defence and security and bilateral cooperation at regional and international forums, said Mr Sang.

The State President asked Mr. Webb to pay more attention to bilateral relations and support Generalised System Preferences (GSP), market economy regulations for Vietnam, joint efforts in dealing with the consequences of the war - especially AO/dioxin - coping with climate change and rises in sea levels.

In the first half of this year, two-way trade increased, particularly in areas of Vietnam’s strength such as garments and textiles and seafood.

On the occasion, State President Sang requested the Senator convey to his invitation for US President Barack Obama to visit Vietnam.