Knapper Ambassador: Vietnamese Relations

On the occasion of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s working visit to the US on May 11-17, VnExpress Interview with US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper about his visit and prospects for bilateral relations.

– In your opinion, how did Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to the US to work in the US affect bilateral relations?

I am honored to be present at events during the visit of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, who spent a week in the US despite a very busy schedule. I think the visit was a great success. It is remarkable that a leader spends so much time on such a trip.

We appreciate and greatly appreciate that the Prime Minister visits not only Washington, but also Boston, New York and San Francisco. This really shows the importance of the bilateral relationship, shows the Prime Minister’s commitment to the Vietnam-US relationship, as well as our deep commitment to this relationship.

The fact that 12 cabinet members accompanied the Prime Minister during the visit is also remarkable, demonstrating the Vietnamese government’s strong commitment to bilateral relations.

The potential of Vietnam-US relations is huge. Exchanges between Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh as well as Vietnamese delegates with the President and our officials have covered all aspects of bilateral relations, from diplomacy to business, economics, trade, investment, science and technology, education, climate change, energy, people-to-people exchanges.

Through such exchanges, we have identified areas to promote future cooperation. I think Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit is a great opportunity for the two countries to create a substantial premise for outstanding development in the coming time.

Ambassador Knapper talked about Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to the US

– How does the Ambassador evaluate the bilateral statements and activities of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during the visit?

Speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Harvard University by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh are excellent speeches. My colleagues really appreciate that Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has clearly and strongly highlighted not only Vietnam’s national interests but also the importance of Vietnam-US relations. So I think the Prime Minister left a very positive impression on the audience present at the event as well as the online viewers.

I was not present at President Joe Biden’s meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, but I did see the two leaders sitting right next to each other at the reception at the White House. Looks like they had a very nice conversation.

When I look at that image, I think of the phrase “one picture is worth a thousand words”, which makes us feel that the two leaders are very focused and enjoying the conversation. For me, that says a lot, not only about the friendship between the two countries, but also about the friendship between the two leaders.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visited Capitol Hill and met with not only Permanent Chairman of the Senate Patrick Leahy, but also a number of other senators who are very interested in Vietnam-US relations, especially in overcoming the consequences of war. which Mr. Leahy actively promoted.

Therefore, this is an opportunity for the US to discuss with Vietnam about Washington’s commitment to overcoming war consequences, including the issue of Agent Orange, handling unexploded ordnance, as well as supporting people with disabilities. .

The US Ambassador talked about the conversation between the Prime Minister and President Biden

– In his speech at CSIS, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized three areas with great potential for cooperation between the two countries in the coming time, namely green growth, digital transformation and supply chain diversification. What will the US do to promote cooperation with Vietnam in these fields?

Regarding green growth, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met the US President’s Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry twice, at the ASEAN-US Special Summit and the event chaired by Mr. Kerry in Boston. They discussed ways for Vietnam and the US to cooperate on green growth and energy transition in Vietnam as well as in the areas of climate finance, technical assistance and professional assistance. Here are three areas where the US and Vietnam can work together.

Digital transformation is an area that not only the US government can support, but also large US enterprises such as Google and Facebook can be partners to support Vietnam’s transformation to the digital economy. This is an issue that we wholeheartedly support because it will bring prosperity, not only to the people of Vietnam but also to people in the region and the United States. We believe this will contribute to making Vietnam stronger, more independent and prosperous.

Supply chain issues are heavily dependent on companies’ decisions, based on their calculations of profits and what is best for them. But I am sure Vietnam is a very attractive place for manufacturers. There are American companies that highly appreciate the skills of Vietnamese workers.

Going forward, we will see that a secure, stable supply chain will become more and more important for the US, Japan, Korea and certainly Vietnam. We can envision a future where Vietnam will be more closely linked economically with the US, as the two sides work to ensure stable access not only to products and components, but also to the global market. stable market where we can sell our finished product.

– During the Special Summit in Washington, the US announced an initiative package of 150 million USD to support ASEAN. How will the US implement that initiative with Vietnam?

The White House has pledged to support ASEAN in many areas such as maritime cooperation, climate change, education, health, and people-to-people exchanges. I will delve into maritime cooperation. The United States has announced $60 million to support maritime law enforcement, not only with the US Coast Guard’s operations in the area, but also with efforts to improve the capacity of the Coast Guard in the area. areas, including the Vietnam Coast Guard.

The US Coast Guard and the Vietnam Coast Guard have had a very strong relationship and I am confident that this relationship will develop even more in the future, because maritime law enforcement forces in the region are at the forefront. of some of the most important issues, like protecting natural resources, fisheries, combating illegal fishing, making sure nations can protect their maritime space, preventing claims illegal navigation. They also play a large role in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance to those in distress at sea.

We may see more cooperation between the US Coast Guard and the Vietnam Coast Guard in the future. We have delivered to the Vietnam Coast Guard two Hamilton-class patrol boats and are ready to provide a third one.

Another area of ​​cooperation with ASEAN that we will deepen is education. The United States will double the size of the Southeast Asian Young Leaders Initiative program to welcome young, rising Southeast Asian leaders to the United States to participate in programs such as the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) under the United States Government. Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC. These initiatives are not just words, these are real actions with real resources, demonstrating the serious and profound commitment of the US in its relationship with ASEAN.

– He mentioned that the US is ready to transfer the third Hamilton-class patrol boat to Vietnam. In addition to this issue, how will the US continue to cooperate with Vietnam on maritime security?

I recently attended the handover event of the Ship Repair Station and Training Center for the Vietnam Coast Guard. It is the device to bring ships to land for repair, ensuring that they can return to the sea. This is just a small example of the work we are doing.

Of course, patrol boats are big and conspicuous. But every day, with our activities, big or small, we all work to support Vietnam to build the most capable Coast Guard possible to protect its waters, national resources, natural resources, and the like. course. I expect this to continue to strengthen, especially now that the US has announced a new initiative with ASEAN.

– The Biden administration in February announced a new Indo-Pacific strategy. How will the US implement the pillars of this strategy with Vietnam?

The US Indo-Pacific strategy has five main pillars: freedom and openness, connectivity, prosperity, security, and resilience. This is a strategy for the whole region, but each aspect is directly related to Vietnam-US relations.

The “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” pillar relates to the common goal between the United States and Vietnam of ensuring freedom of navigation and overflight, and ensuring commercial practices are not coerced or obstructed. return.

The “connectivity” aspect is related to the importance of APEC, ensuring the centrality of ASEAN.

“Prosperity” refers to our efforts to ensure that the US-Vietnam economic relationship can contribute to the prosperity of both countries, through American investment in Vietnam and investment in Vietnam. South entering the US is increasing.

Regarding the “security” pillar, the US is working with Vietnam to contribute to ensuring the territorial integrity, independence and national security of Vietnam against illegal and illegal maritime claims. economic.

In terms of ‘resilience’, we are working very closely with Vietnam on issues such as climate change, global pandemics, and we will continue to do so in the future.

– The US opened the CDC Southeast Asia office in Vietnam in August last year. How does this move affect bilateral relations?cooperate to fight the epidemic?

The decision to locate the CDC Southeast Asia office in Hanoi represents two things. The first is the belief that Vietnam is ideally located to have a regional office responsible for the important issue of health cooperation.

Secondly, setting up this office here is a recognition of the very strong health cooperation relationship between the two countries that has existed since 2004, 2005, when we started working together to fight HIV/AIDS, then tuberculosis and Covid-19. Health cooperation is an important pillar of Vietnam-US relations, so it is understandable to have such an important facility as the regional CDC office in Hanoi.

– Having held the position of political counselor at the US Embassy in Vietnam from 2004 to 2007, how did you feel when you returned to Vietnam and started your ambassadorial term in February?

I am very happy to be back in Vietnam after 15 years. It’s amazing to see how much Vietnam has changed. My family used to live on To Ngoc Van street and we visited the neighborhood again. Some things are still the same, but many shops have sprung up.

However, one thing that has not changed after 15 years is the hospitality of the Vietnamese people. My family received a very warm welcome. I’m really warm-hearted.

My goal during my term as Ambassador is to deepen the friendship between the two countries, seek to further strengthen cooperation in many areas such as investment, trade, health, education, promotion of bilateral relations. activities supporting the energy transition, digital. These are all important areas for both countries.

Therefore, I want our friendship to deepen, the trust between the two countries to increase. I want to see Vietnam grow richer and stronger, capable of defending its independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty. These are all important US goals.

Phuong Vu