US - Viet Nam Relations

Secretary Blinken and Foreign Minister Son reaffirmed the strength of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship and reflected on progress since the elevation of ties during President Biden’s historic visit to Hanoi in September 2023. The Secretary and Foreign Minister addressed ways in which the United States and Vietnam can expand cooperation in key areas, including the semiconductor ecosystem, supply chain diversification, education and culture, security, and human rights. The Secretary and Foreign Minister also discussed shared regional priorities, including a free, open, connected, prosperous, resilient, and secure Indo-Pacific region and promoting stability and prosperity in the South China Sea.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son (left) meets with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

In the six months since the historic upgrade of the U.S.-Vietnam relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, announced by President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, both countries have built on the momentum of our elevated relationship to advance bilateral cooperation across a range of areas, including:

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong chaired the welcoming ceremony for US President Joe Biden to visit Vietnam, September 10, 2023.

INVESTING IN THE INNOVATION ECONOMY, COOPERATING IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Workforce Development Initiatives:  Through a package of $4 million in dedicated programs, the U.S. Mission to Vietnam is enhancing technical skills training and workforce development at every level through expanded U.S.-Vietnam institutional and public-private partnerships.  This package includes expanded English language training for STEM students, expanded exchange programs focused on workforce development and expanded Fulbright scholarship opportunities for STEM students.  The package also includes International Technology Security and Innovation (ITSI) funding implemented by Arizona State University to develop workforce capacity building activities, including faculty workshops, curricula transfer, and resources to enhance assembly, testing, and packaging skills.  The ITSI-funded programs are based on the recommendations of the OECD-led ecosystem review.  U.S. industry has also launched new workforce development initiatives to expand online training and certification programs as well as collaborations with leading Vietnamese higher education institutions.

CULTIVATING PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE TIES:  EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Expanded Education and Cultural Cooperation:  The U.S. Department of State has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) with the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) to promote cooperation with U.S. institutions and to internationalize Vietnam’s higher education sector.  As part of these efforts, the U.S. Mission and MOET are collaborating on an exchange for 20 Vietnamese higher education administrators to travel to the United States to engage with U.S. institutions on workforce development through the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ Community College Administrator Program (CCAP).  This program is designed to further collaboration on education initiatives and share best practices from the U.S. community college model to build capacity in the technical and vocational education sector.  The two countries also signed an MOC on Culture and People-to-People Ties, which promotes museum collaboration and cultural heritage preservation activities, including through the State Department’s new Cultural Heritage Forward program that is being implemented by the Smithsonian Institution and will include participants from Vietnam.

REINFORCING OUR BUSINESS-TO-BUSINESS TIES

Record-Breaking Business Delegations:  Since the upgrade, the Semiconductor Industry Association visited Vietnam twice, bringing a business delegation during their second visit.  The 2024 U.S.-ASEAN Business Council Delegation to Vietnam was the largest in the USABC’s 40-year history.  The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) and Vietnam Development Bank signed a $500 million MOU to support U.S. export financing to advance Vietnam’s green economy transition, infrastructure development projects, and climate-related projects.  The State Department’s Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy and the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi facilitated the “Regional Secure and Diverse ICT Infrastructure Connectivity” workshop in Ha Long, which attracted over 25 companies from the United States and ASEAN partners.

BOLSTERING OUR SECURITY THROUGH ENHANCED COOPERATION

Bolstering Security and Law Enforcement Cooperation: Vietnam is participating in the Global Coalition to Address Synthetic Drug Threats to stem the flow of synthetic drugs and precursor chemicals in the region and across the world.  The United States is also providing technical assistance to the Ministry of Industry and Trade on revisions to its chemical law, incorporating precursor chemicals into the law and aligning it with the international best practices for addressing chemical weapons.  The Departments of State and Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast Guard are partnering with the government of Vietnam on port security to protect our supply chains against trade-based fraud and other nonproliferation risks.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son (right) meets with USAID General Director Samantha Power.

ADVANCING CLIMATE, ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, AND HEALTH

Tackling the Climate Crisis:  The U.S. Mission to Vietnam, through United States Agency for International Development (USAID), launched the Mekong Delta Coastal Habitat Conservation activity to build the resilience of coastal mangrove ecosystems, advance nature-based solutions, and increase U.S. partnership with Vietnam in the Mekong Delta.  As the Just Energy Transition Partnership turns towards implementation, the United States is enhancing technical assistance support for Vietnam’s clean energy transition, including through USAID Vietnam Low Emission Energy Program.  The U.S. Department of State, Vietnam’s Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology, and VMO Holdings launched the Coalition for Climate Entrepreneurship Hub to promote startup activities in the field of climate change.  USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service signed an MOU with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Plant Protection Division to make better use of fertilizer to reduce costs, greenhouse gas emissions, and water pollution.

Enhancing Public Health:  The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention partnered with Vietnam’s health system to provide technical assistance for genome sequencing and bioinformatics to better track and analyze infectious disease threats.  The U.S. Mission to Vietnam, through USAID, announced training and technical support for Bach Mai Hospital Stroke Center to improve stroke care in Vietnam and additional response to infectious diseases in the Mekong sub-region.

MAINTAINING SUBSTANTIVE DIPLOMATIC AND POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT  

Since the historic visit of President Biden to Hanoi in September 2023, the United States has welcomed high-level visits from Vietnam, including from the President, Vice President, and Prime Minister.  Vietnam has also welcomed bipartisan U.S. congressional delegations including those led by Representative Young Kim (R-CA 40) and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY). The two sides also continued robust discussions through bilateral annual dialogues including the U.S.-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue, the U.S.-Vietnam Labor Dialogue, and the U.S.-Vietnam Asia-Pacific Dialogue.