President Truong Tan Sang and President Barack Obama (Source: VNA)

“One hundred years ago, on his journey for independence and liberty for Viet Nam, President Ho Chi Minh set foot on American soil. He came to share the common desire of all mankind: the right to life, equality, liberty and the pursuit of happiness as enshrined in Thomas Jefferson’s 1776 Declaration of Independence founding the United States of America. In February 1946, shortly after the birth of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam, President Ho Chi Minh sent a letter to US President Harry Truman expressing his wish that the two nations develop a relationship of “full cooperation.” Since those days, Viet Nam and the United States have gone through some of history’s vicissitudes, finally establishing full diplomatic ties and opening a new chapter in the two countries relations in 1995.

After almost 30 years of reform, Viet Nam now firmly walks on the path of industrialisation and modernisation to build a wealthy, strong, equal, democratic and advanced country. Joining ASEAN and other global and regional organisations such as the United Nations, WTO, APEC and ASEM, among others, Viet Nam today acts as an active and responsible member of the international community. Our country now strives to strengthen friendship and cooperative relations with all other countries, comprehensively integrates itself into the world and joins common efforts to maintain peace and stability, and promotes cooperation and development in the region and the world. Viet Nam works with the United States and other partners to finalise the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, known as the TPP. Our two countries are also working together to develop and solidify the Asia-Pacific regional architecture with ASEAN as the nucleus. In that process, an independent, strong and prosperous Viet Nam with a foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, multilateralisation and diversification of relations is in the interest of other countries, including the United States .

In the spirit of “shelving the past, looking forward to the future,” Viet Nam and the United States have gone a long way in building a relationship of constructive cooperation on the basis of mutual respect and benefits. The two peoples are not only bonded by the past but are also connected by the expanding ties of politics, diplomacy, trade, investment, education, science, technology, culture, humanitarian cooperation, defense, security, people-to-people exchanges and other areas of common interest. Bilateral ties have been nurtured by the active contributions of a community of over 1.5 million Vietnamese living in the United States, over 15,000 Vietnamese students studying in universities across America , and by the business community, scholars and many other organisations in Viet Nam and the United States . With resolve and goodwill, we will work even harder to usher in a new era of broader, deeper and more productive cooperation.

On two sides of the vast Pacific Ocean , Viet Nam and the United States are sharing a strong belief in the bright future of a peaceful, cooperative and prosperous Asia-Pacific region.

Today, as I visit the country and people of the United States , let us share the joy that President Ho Chi Minh’s dream of a relationship of “full cooperation” between Viet Nam and the United States some seven decades ago now comes true.”