(VOVWORLD) - US President Joe Biden’s upcoming visit to Vietnam will be a new milestone in Vietnam-US relations, which will benefit the people of the two countries and contribute to peace, stability, and development in the region.
 US President Joe Biden (Photo: VNA) |
President Biden will pay a state visit to Vietnam on Sunday and Monday at the invitation of General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong. The visit realizes the invitation between senior leaders of the two countries during a phone call on March 29th on the 10th anniversary of the Comprehensive Partnership between Vietnam and the United States (2013-2023).
Strong impetus from economic-trade ties
Ten years after establishing the Comprehensive Partnership, the relationship between Vietnam and the US has developed significantly, substantially, and sustainably in politics, diplomacy, economics, education, science, technology, health, defense, security, and culture.
Over the last 10 years, two-way trade has increased 5.5 fold, from 25 billion USD in 2012 to 139 billion USD in 2022. Since the two countries normalized their relations in 1995, bilateral trade has increased more than 240 fold.
The US was Vietnam’s the second-largest trading partner, and Vietnam was the US’s seventh-largest trading partner in 2022. For several years, the US has been one of the largest foreign investors in Vietnam, with more than 1,150 operational projects.
Cooperation in other fields has also seen great progress. 30,000 Vietnamese students are studying at US universities. This is more than any other Southeast Asian country has sent. It’s a foundation for promoting people-to-people exchanges and building friendship between the two peoples.
Medical cooperation has also been close, particularly in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Another highlight in the Vietnam-US relationship is cooperation to resolve war consequences and promote reconciliation.
 Vietnamese lychees are sold at Safeway, the largest supermarket chain in the West Coast of the US. (Photo: vov.vn) |
Respect, foundation of bilateral political relations
The foundation for those developments is the Vietnam-US political relationship which has been steadily consolidated and deepened. Senior leaders of both countries have made regular visits. Since the normalization of relations in 1995, every US President has visited Vietnam. These visits create an impetus for bilateral relations and build political trust and a shared respect for basic principles of the UN Charter regarding independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and freedom to choose a political regime and development path.
This was clearly expressed in the Joint Vision Statement of July 2015, on the occasion of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's first official visit to the United States.
During in a phone call in March with Mr. Trong, President Biden reaffirmed that Vietnam is an important partner of the US. He said the US supports an "independent, self-reliant, and prosperous" Vietnam, respects Vietnam's independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political system, and agrees that respect is an important foundation of bilateral relations.
With that spirit, President Biden’s visit to Vietnam will be an opportunity for the two countries to deepen their fine relationship and satisfy the aspirations of their people.
The success of the Vietnam-US relationship is an example of how countries can overcome big disagreements in the past to work together for a better future.
The positive development of the Vietnam-US relationship is an important factor contributing to the stability and development of the region and the world.
Vietnam and the US share a vision of an open, cooperative Indo-Pacific region, based on respecting each country's sovereignty and international law. This is consistent with ASEAN’s positioning itself as a balanced, independent, and self-reliant development pole of the world.