Socialist Republic of Vietnam

National Assembly (NA) Vice Chairman Gen. Do Ba Ty is leading a high-level delegation of the NA on a working visit to the United States from July 21-27 in order to bolster the Vietnam-US Comprehensive Partnership.

During the stay, the Vietnamese delegation had working sessions with US congressmen representing the Senate’s Committee on Armed Services, Committee on Appropriations and Committee on Finance, and the House of Representatives’ Committee on Armed Services. The delegation visited the Department of Defence and met with Deputy Secretary of Defence Patrick Shanahan who was assigned to meet the delegation by Secretary of Defense James Mattis due to his work-travel absence, National Security Advisor to Vice President Mike Pence Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, and received several US scholars and entrepreneurs.

In those meetings, Gen. Ty reaffirmed Vietnam’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralization of international relations, with importance attached to consolidating and developing the bilateral comprehensive partnership with the US.

The Vietnamese delegation took the occasion to recommend potential aspects for the two sides to intensify cooperation in supervision and legislative affairs, and in economics, trade, security and defence, particularly in addressing war consequences such as dioxin detoxification, support for AO/dioxin victims, bomb and mine clearance, and search for missing servicemen of both sides.

While meeting representatives from US enterprises, Vietnam’s NA deputies informed them of policies and laws regulating the business and investment environment in Vietnam.

They clarified US enterprises’ queries on impacts of the Law on Cyber Security and tax policies so that they can feel secured when running business and investment in the Southeast Asian country.

The Vietnamese legislature will pay attention to law making to have appropriate laws so as to ensure the equality and interests of both domestic and foreign investors, Ty affirmed.

US congressmen and officials spoke highly of the significance of the Vietnamese NA delegation’s visit at a time when the US Congress is discussing several contents related to the two countries’ relations. They said that the two sides share concerns over climate change response, rising sea level, as well as peace, security and development cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region./.

They also agreed that the two countries should boost collaboration in economics, trade, security and defence, while humanitarian work to tackle war consequences will be promoted in the time ahead. The two sides will step up delegation exchanges and intensify supervision to speed up the implementation of signed cooperation agreements./.