U.S. President’s upcoming visit to Viet Nam to accelerate bilateral relations even more

U.S. Ambassador to Viet Nam Marc E. Knapper made that above statement during his recent interview with the VGP ahead of the U.S. President's State visit to Viet Nam from September 10–11.

According to the U.S. Ambassador, over the last several months, Viet Nam and the U.S. have been commemorating the 10th anniversary of the two countries' Comprehensive Partnership.

Both sides have done this with visits by senior leaders going both ways. In late March, President Biden spoke with Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. At the time, the two leaders tasked the two respective governments to figure out how to elevate the partnership to new heights.

They also talked about trying to visit each other, and the President's upcoming visit is a wonderful combination of all these efforts and is a great way to implement the wishes of both sides' leaders, he said, adding that President Biden is very excited about coming.

U.S. President Biden's visit to Viet Nam will really help to send a strong message to people in both countries about how important and consequential the relationship between the U.S. and Viet Nam is.   

"The basic and essential policy of the U.S. is to support a strong, independent, prosperous, and resilient Viet Nam. We support Viet Nam, its territorial integrity, sovereignty, independence, and we respect each other's political system", noted the diplomat.

With this visit, the two nations are going to look for ways to deepen even more shared commitment to these goals, whether it's working with Viet Nam to create an innovation-driven economy, whether it's working with Viet Nam, on education cooperation, diversifying and strengthening supply chains of high-tech items like semiconductors.

These will be really important features of the visit. The message will be a very good one-one that's optimistic and future-oriented.

Remarkable development of Viet Nam-U.S. relationship

Regarding outstanding achievements of the relationship, Ambassador Knapper said, in every area of cooperation between the two countries, there has been tremendous growth.

Ten years ago, at the outset of the comprehensive partnership, bilateral trade was US$30 billion. Now, bilateral trade has reached about US$139 billion, which is a 360 percent increase in the last 10 years.

He also highlighted the growth in investment, not just from the U.S. into Viet Nam, but also from Viet Nam to the U.S.

VinFast, for example, announced its investment in North Carolina, and just broke ground on its new factory. Not too long ago, Vinfast list on an American Stock Exchange, and it's exciting to see other companies interested in doing the same. It shows how increasingly interconnected the two economies are.

"We're very pleased with Viet Nam joining with the U.S. and 12 other countries to launch IPEF, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework last year. This effort will go a long way to promote things that our countries in the region need-secure supply chains, the promotion of green infrastructure", stressed the Ambassador.

Besides, both nations have deepened health cooperation. Such as during COVID-19, the two countries worked very closely together to support each other as friends when they needed it the most.

In education cooperation, Viet Nam is now the fifth largest source country of foreign students in the U.S., which is remarkable.

"I would like to continue to see the number to grow. We've gotten our Peace Corps volunteers here teaching English. Fulbright University just graduated its first class and we consider the university to be a real gem in examples of our two countries' cooperation. We appreciate very much the support that we've gotten to date from the Government of Viet Nam as well as local authorities and Ho Chi Minh City", he shared.

The U.S. has broken ground on a new embassy. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in recent April when Secretary Blinken visited Viet Nam, with the participation of Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, and Assistant Secretary Daniel Kritenbrink.

"This is an amazing milestone because over the next several years, we're going to construct an embassy that is ultra-modern. It will be a physical embodiment of the strengths and importance of our bilateral ties", noted the Ambassador.

Besides the practical benefits, it's a US$1.2 billion project, which will generate nearly 2,000 local jobs, as well as contribute US$350 million to Viet Nam's economy, he added.

Climate change has also been significant, through efforts such as the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). The U.S. is the largest contributor to this, along with other countries in the G7 and some private sector participants. In these areas, there are the potential for future growth.

"In all these areas, I think we've seen growth and potential for continued growth.", reiterated the diplomat.

War legacy cooperation is foundational to Viet Nam-U.S. ties

According to Marc E. Knapper, war legacy cooperation is foundational to the two countries' ties. The two nations have been doing work in this area even before normalization in 1995.

"We're grateful for the efforts Viet Nam has made in accounting for American missing service members from the war. We're grateful to both the Vietnamese government and the Vietnamese people for their help in bringing closure for more than 700 American families", shared the diplomat.

At same time, the U.S. is very committed to the program Viet Nam Wartime Accounting Initiative, which uses archival research and DNA analysis that will help Viet Nam account for its own missing service members, he added.

The U.S. is committed to efforts to clean up dioxin hot spots and succeeded in Da Nang a couple of years ago. Both nations have an ongoing project in Bien Hoa. The U.S. efforts to clean up unexploded ordnance from the war continue as well.

This is very important because these unexploded devices can cause injury and death and impede economic development. Assisting people with injuries and disabilities is also a key part of the war legacy efforts, said the Ambassador, expressing his gratitude for government and people of Viet Nam for their cooperation in this area.

"I'm constantly amazed at the dynamism and optimism here, and the friendship that people of Viet Nam have extended to myself personally and to the U.S. in general. Our relationship is a true success story. We will welcome President Biden to Viet Nam and we're very grateful for the collaboration from the Government of Viet Nam and Vietnamese people to make this visit a success", he shared./.