Socialist Republic of Vietnam

by Reps. Rob Simmons (R-Conn.) and Lane Evans (D-Ill.)

The word "Vietnam" evokes different images and emotions from different people. Those of us who are Vietnam veterans remember the war, of course, while others may remember the anti-war movement of 40 years ago.

For many of us, however, the war is over. Vietnam is a country of 82 million people, two thirds of which were not even alive in 1975. It is time to move forward and recognize that the future of U.S.-Vietnamese relations lies in constructive approaches to our bilateral relations.

On this basis, this spring we hosted a reception for Nguyen Phuc Thanh, Vice President of the National Assembly of Vietnam, to kick off the formation of the U.S.-Vietnam Caucus, a bipartisan group of U.S. representatives working to strengthen ties between our two people and governments. The event was widely attended by members of Congress, staff, Vietnamese officials and members of the business community.

As relations continue to improve between our two countries, we felt the time had come to bring more attention to the positive aspects of this relationship to House members. The caucus has since worked hard to promote a stronger relationship between our two countries.

While looking ahead, building new ties, and discussing current issues with Vietnam, we cannot forget the importance and cornerstone of our post war relationship – achieving the full accounting of our Missing-In-Action (MIA). The Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, formerly known as the Joint Task Force, was originally established in 1993 and remains committed to this goal. (See www.internationalreports.net for MIA article by Deputy Secretary Jennings.) We support their continued close cooperation with Vietnam and remain committed to sharing information both ways, also seeking a full accountability of Vietnam’s missing.

Trade is another area for consideration when discussing our relationship with Vietnam. The United States and Vietnam signed a landmark Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) in December 2001, paving the way for the extension of Normal Trade Relations (NTR) status for Vietnamese goods entering the U.S. market. This NTR status is conditional upon freedom of emigration criteria and subject to annual renewal by the president, including opportunity for disapproval resolutions, known as Jackson-Vanik, to be introduced in Congress. President Bill Clinton, current President George Bush, and both houses of Congress have shown continuing support for this mutually beneficial trade relationship.

In addition, as Vietnam moves toward World Trade Organization (WTO) accession, the U.S.-Vietnam Caucus will be an important forum for focusing on private sector and other concerns not currently addressed by the BTA. We look forward to exploring the implications of extending Permanent Normal Trading Relations to Vietnam upon conclusion of bilateral trade negotiations under the WTO framework.

The respect for human rights and religious freedom is an important tenet of U.S. foreign policy. To this end, our continued engagement with Vietnam is crucial. Through regular dialogues centered on enhancing human rights conditions and religious freedom in Vietnam, our two nations have been able to tackle some of the most difficult and contentious obstacles including freedom of emigration, political and religious freedom concerns and other issues affecting humanitarian assistance. This caucus will be an important forum where such issues and particular cases can be addressed.

Finally, with today’s current world climate, a strong cooperative relationship with Vietnam on defense issues is essential. Vietnamese Defense Minister Pham Van Tra was received by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in November last year, and in the same month, the USS Vandergrift, a U.S. Navy frigate, made the first visit of a U.S. Navy ship to Vietnam in almost 30 years. While bilateral security cooperation with Vietnam continues to develop, we hope that further debate and recourse through this forum could break new ground in this area including cooperation on issues such as demining, research on Agent Orange and other war legacy issues, and veterans-to-veterans relations.

Vietnam participated in the October 2003 Madrid Donor Conference hosted by the United States and while still a developing country itself, Vietnam pledged grants of over $1 million. Further, Vietnam sent donations of tea and rice to aid the people of Iraq as they attempt to rebuild their country. Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Vietnam sent their sincere condolences and later that year supported U.S. actions in Afghanistan to break up the al Qaeda terrorist network.

They have worked tirelessly with the international community to track and stop the flow of terrorist funds through their country. As part of the U.S.-led war on terrorism, the Caucus will look at additional bilateral efforts.

We believe that it is time to change the focus of our relationship with Vietnam. Focusing on the constructive approaches to POW/MIA recovery, trade, human rights and defense issues, both of our countries will reap the benefits. As times and world climates change, so must our approach to our relationships with other countries. It is time to move forward in this new era in the U.S.-Vietnamese relationship and our caucus looks forward to addressing issues of interest to the governments and people of the United States and Vietnam.

The Washington Times, September 28, 2004