International media praises US for lifting arms embargo on Vietnam

"Strong symbolic action", "historic move" are the words that the international media used to describe the US lifting the arms embargo on Vietnam.

At a joint press conference with President Tran Dai Quang in Hanoi on May 23, President Barack Obama announced that the US was completely lifting the ban on selling lethal weapons to Vietnam to further strengthen the cooperative relationship between the two countries and erase the vestiges of the Cold War. But he rejected the argument that lifting the arms embargo was a way for the US to contain China’s influence.

Immediately after Obama announced the decision, a series of major news agencies - such as BBC, CNN, Reuters, WSJ, Bloomberg, Times - simultaneously reported the news on their front pages. BBC commented that this was a powerful symbolic act.

"This change means Vietnam can access more weapons," BBC quoted Mr. Obama.

After the honor guard review ceremony at the Presidential Palace on May 23, President Tran Dai Quang and President Barack Obama came to greet and shake hands with officials from both countries.

The Washington Post and AP used the phrase "historic move" to describe the White House boss's announcement. According to the newspaper, with the presence of US Secretary of State John Kerry, a veteran of the Vietnam War, in the International Convention Center, President Obama opened a new chapter in the history of relations between the two countries.

According to AP, the White House’s lifting of the arms embargo will create a positive psychological momentum for Vietnam’s leaders, but because the US arms sales procedures are quite complicated, the number of weapons that the US will sell to Vietnam will be difficult to increase significantly. Although Washington partially lifted the ban on selling lethal weapons to Vietnam in 2014, Vietnam has yet to purchase any weapons systems from the US.

"With his visit to Vietnam, President Obama hopes to strengthen relations with an emerging economy where the middle class is growing rapidly and is a potential market for American goods," AP commented.

Reuters quoted President Tran Dai Quang's comments on the US decision.

"Vietnam highly appreciates the decision to completely lift the ban on the sale of lethal weapons to Vietnam. This is clear evidence that the relationship between the two countries has completely normalized," the President said.

CNN quoted Ms. Hua Chunying, spokeswoman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, about completely lifting the arms embargo.

"The arms embargo is a relic of the Cold War and should no longer exist. We hope that the US lifting such a ban will benefit regional peace and development. China is happy to see the US and Vietnam developing normal cooperative relations," she said.

According to Zing.vn