U.S. Vietnamese “Partnership”

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“Moving forward as partners, we will achieve great prosperity and success for the American people and for the Vietnamese people.”

President Donald J. Trump All reporting White House

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“Today the Vietnamese economy is one of the fastest-growing on earth… We know it is in America’s interests to have partners throughout this region that are thriving, prosperous, and dependent on no one… We want strong partners, not weak neighbors. And above all, we seek friendship.”

President Donald J. Trump

Remarks by President Trump and President Quang of Vietnam in Joint Press Conference | Hanoi, Vietnam From the White House

PRESIDENT QUANG:  (As interpreted.)  Your Excellency Donald Trump, President of the United States of America, ladies and gentlemen, members of the media:  President Trump and I have had fruitful talks about the bilateral relations and regional and international issues of mutual interest.

We both share the views that the bilateral relations have scored substantial results over the years, delivering enormous benefits to the people of both countries.

During President Trump’s state visit to Vietnam, Vietnam and the United States issued a joint statement pledging to further deepen the Vietnam-United States Comprehensive Partnership on the basis of mutual respect for each other’s independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and political systems.

Within the visit’s framework, the two sides reached important agreements on economy and trade.  Addressing war legacy issues will receive higher priority, and we are committed to collaborate actively on this matter.  Vietnam highly values the United States decision to cooperate with Vietnam on dioxin cleanup at Bien Hoa Air Base after the two countries successfully concluded the dioxin cleanup project at Da Nang Airport.

The President and I discussed regional and international issues of mutual interest.  We agreed to strengthen our close coordination at regional and international forums to contribute to the maintenance of peace and stability in the region and the world at large.

We also agreed on the importance of the ASEAN-United States strategic partnership.  We believe that the development of Vietnam-U.S. relations would not only benefit each country, but also contribute to strengthening ASEAN-U.S. relations for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the Asia Pacific and the world.

The President’s state visit to Vietnam marks a milestone in Vietnam-U.S. relations, creating strong momentum for the substantive, effective and stable development of the bilateral comprehensive partnership.

I wish President Trump and members of the U.S. delegation a successful visit, and I hope that you will have good impressions of our country and our people.

I sincerely thank Mr. President, personally, and the American people for the warm friendship towards our country and people, and I appreciate the great efforts to develop Vietnam-U.S. bilateral relations.  I would also like to thank all American and Vietnamese reporters who are here today.  Thank you very much.

PRESIDENT TRUMP:  Thank you very much, President Quang.  And thank you for your tremendous hospitality during my first visit to Vietnam.  It is a pleasure to be with you right here in Hanoi.

On behalf of the entire American delegation, I want to thank the Vietnamese people for their warm welcome, and to reaffirm the strong friendship and growing partnership between our two nations.

Travelers from all around the world, including many Americans, come to Vietnam each year to admire your magnificent limestone mountains, cycle through your many winding hillsides, or swim in the majestic Ha Long Bay.

Your nation’s magnificence brings different people together from around the world in shared appreciation of the great beauty and splendor of your wonderful country.  Over the past two decades, our two nations have come together to find common purpose based on common interests.  And that’s what’s happening.  It is those crucial bonds we are here to reaffirm today.

In May, the United States transferred the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Morgenthau to the people and country of Vietnam.  Named for U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr., this vessel once patrolled the coasts of Vietnam during the Vietnam War.  Today, the same American vessel, a gift between partners, is sailing the waters of the Pacific on its way to patrol these coasts for the people of Vietnam.

This month we mark Veterans Day in the United States.  And out of war and conflict, we have achieved a deep friendship, partnership, and we have achieved peace.  Bound by mutual respect and common experience, our veterans laid the foundation for that achievement between our nations.

Our decades-long joint humanitarian efforts with the Vietnamese people and government to account for and recover personnel still missing — so important to us — from the war honors these horrors of this horrendous war.  We want our servicemembers support — and we give total support to the families, and we strengthen the foundation of our comprehensive partnership.  That is so important to us.

In the spirit of our friendship, I want to congratulate President Quang for hosting a very successful APEC Leaders Meeting this week in Da Nang.  Congratulations.  You did a fantastic job.  Thank you.

As I stated in my address to the APEC CEO Summit on Friday, the United States is committed to a free and open Indo-Pacific, where strong, independent nations respect each other’s sovereignty, uphold the rule of law, and advance responsible commerce.  We want our partners in the Indo-Pacific to be proud and self-reliant, not proxies or satellites.

We look forward to achieving a bilateral trade agreement with partners who abide by the principles of fair and reciprocal trade — two very important words:  fair and reciprocal.  It hasn’t been that way for the United States almost at all.  And we’re changing that, and we’re changing it rapidly.  For trade to work, all countries must play by the rules.

I am encouraged that Vietnam has recently become the fastest growing export market to the United States.

BIG-TICKET PURCHASES: President Donald J. Trump is pleased that Vietnamese airlines have agreed to purchase new planes, engines, and services from American companies.  

• President Donald J. Trump, alongside President Trong of Vietnam, participated in the signing of commercial trade deals between leading Vietnamese airlines and American companies.
• These agreements reflect the deep economic partnership enjoyed by the United States and Vietnam.
• These agreements are worth over $21 billion and include the following:
  • VietJet will buy 100 American-made Boeing 737-MAX jets and 215 General Electric-developed LEAP engines.
  • Bamboo Airways will purchase 10 Boeing 787-9 aircraft.
  • Vietnam Airlines pledges to acquire a minimum of $50 million in reservation systems and other services from Sabre Corporation.
• These purchases will support more than 83,000 American jobs and improve safety and reliability for Vietnamese and international travelers.

STRENGTHENING TIES: President Trump is committed to deepening economic ties and advancing the partnership between the United States and Vietnam.

• These deals are a reflection of the work President Trump has undertaken to strengthen the partnership between the United States and Vietnam.
• In May 2017, President Trump and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc pledged to enhance the comprehensive partnership between the United States and Vietnam.
  • Among other commitments, both sides pledged to promote and grow mutually beneficial economic ties between their two countries.
• In November 2017, during President Trump’s first historic visit, Vietnamese companies announced agreements to purchase $12 billion in American goods and services.
• Vietnam also committed to eliminate trade barriers on United States agricultural exports, opening up new markets for American farmers.

EXPANDING ACCESS: President Trump is expanding markets for American goods and services abroad.

• President Trump is taking bold actions to enforce free, fair, and reciprocal trade for the United States and to negotiate better deals for the American people.
• The President negotiated the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement to improve market access for American firms and promote fair trade.
• Thanks to the improved United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement, South Korea is significantly increasing access to its markets for United States auto exports.
• President Trump is launching new trade negotiations with the European Union, United Kingdom, and Japan, working toward eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade.
• President Trump’s leadership has opened opportunities for American agricultural goods in Argentina, Brazil, Japan, South Korea, and other countries.