US and Vietnam build momentum with upgraded ties

US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Vietnamese Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son in Washington, D.C. for the inaugural Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) foreign ministerial meeting on March 25, where both sides pointed out the positive progress that was being made.

Blinken and Son reaffirmed the strength of the US-Vietnam relationship and reflected on progress since the elevation of ties during President Biden’s historic visit to Hanoi in September 2023.

"In the time since President Biden’s visit, we have moved forward together – moved forward together in strengthening and deepening our collaboration in critical areas, everything from semiconductors to supply chains to educational and technological exchanges, people-to-people contacts, and of course, our ongoing commitment to war legacies. So I think this is a demonstration of not only our commitment to the Indo-Pacific but our commitment to the central role that Vietnam and the relationship between our countries plays in the Indo-Pacific," Blinken said.

In the same vein, Minister Son said, "For this year, we celebrated 30 years of the lifting of US embargo against Vietnam. Next year would be the 30^th of our bilateral relations, of normalisation of relations. And more than that, as President Joe Biden has said, that CSP would help us to move our relationship in the next 50 years, not one or two years."

"We continue to attach great importance to the relationship with the US, and we want with you to make – complete a plan of actions to move our relationship forwards in accordance with CSP, not only the high political exchange between our two countries to continue to foster our bilateral mutual trust and also to deepen our relationship not only in trade, investment, science, technology, innovation, education, but more than that is in semiconductor and chips," he said.

In the six months since the historic upgrade of the US-Vietnam relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, announced by President Biden and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong, both countries have built on the momentum of their elevated relationship.

Through a package of $4 million in dedicated programmes, the US Mission to Vietnam is enhancing technical skills training and workforce development at every level through expanded US-Vietnam institutional and public-private partnerships.

The US Department of State has signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Training to promote cooperation with US institutions and to internationalise Vietnam’s higher education sector.

Since the upgrade, the Semiconductor Industry Association visited Vietnam twice, bringing a business delegation during their second visit. The 2024 US-ASEAN Business Council Delegation to Vietnam was the largest in 40 years.

The US' Export-Import Bank and Vietnam Development Bank signed a $500 million MoU to support US export financing to advance Vietnam’s green economy transition, infrastructure development projects, and climate-related projects.

Building on 30 years of US-Vietnam advancements This year marks the 30th anniversary of the American Chamber of Commerce and the beginning of US-Vietnam economic relations, and our members now account for billions of US dollars in foreign investment, tens of thousands of direct employees, hundreds of thousands of indirect employees, and a significant share of Vietnam’s exports and tax revenues.

Major US groups taking long-term investment view As Vietnam and the US enter a new phase of economic relations, American companies are preparing to offer an expansion in investments.

PM, USABC discuss deepening partnership in Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hosted a reception in Hanoi on March 21 for a high-ranking delegation from the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) led by the council's President and CEO Ted Osius, during which he stressed the instrumental role played by the USABC in the growing Vietnam-US economic ties.