Senator John McCain speaks about General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's visit

(Baonghean) - According to the official website of US Senator John McCain, today he made a statement about the visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, with the following content:

“I warmly welcome General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong on his historic visit to the United States – the first by a Vietnamese General Secretary. This trip demonstrates the growing strength of the US-Vietnam partnership as we celebrate the 20th anniversary of normalization of relations between our two countries.

Senator John McCain

Vietnam is an important emerging partner with which the United States shares strategic and economic interests, including strengthening an open regional trade order, maintaining a favorable balance of power in the Asia-Pacific region, and upholding long-standing principles of the world order, such as freedom of navigation and the peaceful resolution of international disputes.

Even for those of us who worked to normalize the relationship 20 years ago, the progress our two countries have made together is astonishing. Since 1995, annual U.S.-Vietnam trade has grown from less than $500 million to $36 billion last year. Further cementing this achievement, the recent passage by the U.S. Congress of trade promotion authority (TPA) for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) sends a strong strategic signal of America’s enduring commitment to the region and its partners.

The United States and Vietnam are better positioned than ever to accelerate this process. Vietnam now sends more students to the United States each year than any other Southeast Asian country. I saw the confidence and skills of Vietnam’s young generation on full display this past May when I visited the University of Social Sciences and Humanities in Ho Chi Minh City.

The United States and Vietnam also share a strong commitment to peace and security in the Asia-Pacific region. This is especially important in the context of China’s continued reclamation and militarization of features in the South China Sea. To help Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries commit to peacefully resolving maritime disputes, the U.S. Congress is currently seeking to authorize the Department of Defense to provide $425 million to train and equip the armed forces of Southeast Asian countries to build their maritime capabilities.

In addition, I believe that the United States should further ease the current ban on the sale of lethal military equipment to Vietnam, including equipment that supports the capabilities of the Vietnamese armed forces to operate more effectively on and within its territorial waters.

The past 20 years have seen remarkable progress in our relationship, greater than anyone could have hoped for. I look forward to meeting with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong this week as our two countries seek to continue building on our shared vision of a peaceful and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.”

Thu Giang

(According to mccain.senate.gov)