US Vice President Kamala Harris holds a press conference before ending her visit to Vietnam. (photo: Reuters)

At meetings with Vietnamese leaders, Ms Harris said the US supports a strong, independent, and prosperous Vietnam, its renewal and international integration process, and a more important role in ASEAN and the region.

Foreign news agencies have closely followed Vice President Harris's activities during her three days in Vietnam. She attended the inauguration of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Southeast Asia Regional Office in Hanoi and the singing of an agreement on rebuilding the US Embassy in Vietnam, witnessed the donation of 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine for Vietnam, and laid wreath in memory of the late US Senator John McCain at his Memorial at Truc Bach lake.

Foreign newspapers quoted Ms Harris’s statement at the press conference on Thursday as saying that her visit signals the beginning of a new chapter in the Vietnam-US relationship.

The New York Times said Ms Harris’s solo trip to Singapore and Vietnam set the tone for the international arena following her first foreign trip to Central America in June.

AFP said her visit seeks to reset the US’s relations in Asia after the turbulent Donald Trump years and stress its commitment to Southeast Asian allies. The opening of the Southeast Asia branch of the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Hanoi and donating a million Covid-19 vaccines to Vietnam are parts of the plan.

Asia Times said the trips show the US’s determination and commitment for Southeast Asia.