Socialist Republic of Vietnam

(VNA) Vietnam supports the US to become a full member of the East Asia Summit (EAS), Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has said.

PM Dung made the remark at his meeting in Hanoi on Oct. 29 with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who came to attend the fifth EAS as a representative of US President B. Obama.

In 2010, the US has made important contributions to enhancing ties with ASEAN and deploying constructive policies in the region, especially the Greater Mekong Subregion Initiative, the PM said.

On the occasion, he thanked the US for its sympathy and practical assistance to flood victims in Vietnam ’s central region.

Welcoming the US Secretary of State’s idea on upgrading the two countries’ ties, PM Dung said he assigned relevant agencies to study the issue and exchange views with relevant US agencies.

Economic ties should be the core in bilateral relations and a motivation for development of other ties, he said.

PM Dung also requested relevant agencies soon adopt solutions for the two countries to avoid trade disputes.

He asked the US to help develop Can Tho University in the Mekong delta into a regional university specialized in training and research on responses to climate change.

The Vietnamese leader expressed his hope that Secretary Hillary Clinton and the US Government will continue to care for and further assist Vietnam in dealing with the war consequences.

For her part, Secretary Clinton suggested that the two countries hold talks on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement and affirmed that the US will assist Vietnam in building a university specializing in climate change a and provides funding for clearing UXOs and decontaminating dioxin, for healthcare, and the fight against HIV/AIDS.

She also requested that Southeast Asian countries work out long-term solutions to the East Sea issues and strictly abide by the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC).

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem held talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Oct. 30.

They reviewed developments in the two countries’ relations this year and agreed to further step up the ties in politics, external relations, economy, trade, and education, as well as humanitarian cooperation, and coordination in dealing with climate change, sea level rise and civil nuclear energy.

The US official reiterated the US ’s policy of enhancing cooperation with ASEAN member countries, actively participating in the Asia-Pacific architecture, and backing ASEAN’s central role in this architecture.

On behalf of the US Government, Secretary Clinton thanked Vietnam , as ASEAN Chair, for supporting the US ’s joining in EAS and affirmed that her country will, together with East Asian countries, contribute to peace, security, stability, cooperation and development in the region.

Later on the day, Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton witnessed the signing of a series of documents between the two countries.

The documents included a cooperation agreement between the Ministry of Information and Communications and Microsoft Group, a deal between Vietnam Airlines and Boeing, and a memorandum of understanding on technical cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security and the US Department of State on methods of approaching and dealing with issues relating to the UN Anti-Torture Convention.

The two FMs held a joint press briefing later./.