Celebrating 20 years of normalization of Vietnam-US relations

A period of 20 years is not a long time, "but the good news is that in that short period of time, the Vietnam-US relationship has achieved many impressive steps forward."

Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh speaks at the ceremony celebrating the 20th anniversary of the normalization of Vietnam-US diplomatic relations.

That was the statement of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh at the ceremony to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the normalization of Vietnam-US diplomatic relations, organized by the US Embassy in Hanoi, on the evening of July 2, with the presence of former US President Bill Clinton.

The Deputy Prime Minister said that with a forward-looking mindset, the two countries have been making great efforts to “rise above the past and reshape future relations”. To date, Vietnam has become one of the leading ASEAN countries in exporting to the United States while the United States is the 7th largest investor in Vietnam.

More importantly, the two countries have continuously strengthened political relations and mutual understanding through the exchange of high-level visits and effective dialogue mechanisms. In particular, the two countries established a comprehensive partnership framework in 2013.

Beyond the framework of bilateral relations, the Vietnam-US relationship has been making “increasingly important contributions to peace, cooperation and development in the Asia-Pacific region and the world.”

On this occasion, the Deputy Prime Minister highly appreciated and sent sincere thanks to the Vietnamese and American people who have accompanied and joined hands to build and promote the friendship and cooperation between the two countries to continuously develop.

The Deputy Prime Minister also expressed special thanks for the great efforts and important contributions of former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in building friendship, promoting comprehensive cooperation between the two nations as well as contributing to maintaining peace, stability and cooperation in the region.

When the United States and Vietnam understand each other

During his fifth visit to Vietnam, former President Bill Clinton shared many thoughts about the Vietnam-US relationship, and said that normalizing relations with Vietnam helps "heal the wounds of war" and "create a practical relationship".

Mr. Bill Clinton shared: 20 years ago, normalizing relations with Vietnam was not easy, but when Vietnamese friends accepted us and vice versa, both sides liberated themselves.

There are many people who fought in Vietnam who contributed a lot to the process of normalizing relations between the two countries, such as Senator John Kerry (currently US Secretary of State), or Senator John McCain... They are the ones who created the motivation and helped me to normalize relations with Vietnam.

Mr. Bill Clinton congratulated Vietnam on its many proud achievements in development in many fields.

Emphasizing the importance and historical significance of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's upcoming visit to the United States, the former US President said that this is an opportunity for the American people to learn more about the country and people of Vietnam, to see how Vietnam has changed over the past 20 years.

According to VNA