Vietnam, US seek ways to deepen all-round ties

Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung held talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington D.C. on February 19, during which the two sides discussed measures to further promote Vietnam - US relations in the future.

Trung, who is accompanying Party General Secretary To Lam to the inaugural meeting of the Gaza Board of Peace, thanked Rubio for his congratulatory message to the Vietnamese Party chief and the 14th National Party Congress, noting that the Congress set out major orientations, including a foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, self-strengthening, peace, friendship, cooperation and development, and proactive, responsible engagement in regional and global issues.

He affirmed that Vietnam attaches importance to a stable and long-term relationship with the US for the benefit of both nations' people and for peace, stability and development in the region and the world. Trung highly valued the US Secretary of State’s personal support and the active cooperation of the US Department of State in effectively advancing the bilateral ties.

Trung proposed closer coordination to strengthen political trust, promote high-level and all-level exchanges, and expand cooperation in economy, defence-security, war consequence remediation, and science and technology.

On international and regional issues, the Vietnamese FM welcomed the US’s sustained and responsible contributions to regional peace, security and development, spoke highly of President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace initiative, and thanked the US for inviting Vietnam to join the mechanism. He affirmed Vietnam’s readiness to optimise its role and advantages to work with the US and the international community to promote peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

For his part, Rubio congratulated Vietnam on the success of the 14th National Party Congress, and affirmed the US's support for a strong, independent, self-reliant and prosperous Vietnam. He commended the country’s socio-economic achievements, and held that Vietnam's development model is applicable to many countries.

He thanked Vietnam for being among the first countries to accept the invitation to join the Board of Peace and for the attendance of Party General Secretary To Lam at its inaugural meeting in Washington D.C., saying the participation reflects Vietnam’s increasingly proactive and active role in addressing common regional and global challenges.

The Secretary of State noted that Vietnam–US relations rest on a solid foundation and shared interests - a fundamental factor for its future growth.

He expressed his hope that the two sides will continue to work closely together to further deepen their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in a more effective manner. Rubio hailed Trung's proposals regarding the bilateral ties, agreeing to promote exchanges and meetings between high-ranking leaders of the two countries.

Regarding economic and trade cooperation, the US side called for the early conclusion of reciprocal tariff negotiations to create a framework for stronger bilateral collaboration, alongside expanded cooperation in science and technology, defence and security for the benefit of both countries' people and for regional and global peace and stability.

The two sides also exchanged views on regional and international issues of mutual concern. Rubio spoke highly of Vietnam’s growing role and voice at regional and multilateral forums such as ASEAN, G20 and APEC, stressing the importance of settling disputes through peaceful means on the basis of respect for the interests of all parties.

On this occasion, Trung reiterated his invitation to the US Secretary of State to visit Vietnam, which Rubio gladly accepted./.