Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn meets National Security Advisor of the United States Jake Sullivan. — VNA/VNS Photo Kiều Trang

WASHINGTON — Minister of Foreign Affairs Bùi Thanh Sơn held a working session with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Washington D.C. on Monday (local time) as part of his US trip to co-chair the first annual dialogue between the foreign ministers of Việt Nam and the US.

Sullivan reaffirmed that the US attached great importance to relations with Việt Nam and supported a strong, independent, self-resilient and prosperous Việt Nam with increasingly important role in the region and the world.

He expressed delight at the two sides actively and proactively implementing their comprehensive strategic partnership and high-level agreements reached by US President Joe Biden and General Secretary of the Communist Party of Việt Nam Nguyễn Phú Trọng during the former’s visit to Việt Nam in September 2023.

For his part, Sơn said he was pleased with the specific and positive results recorded during the implementation of the Việt Nam-US comprehensive strategic partnership so far, especially the regular high-level delegation exchanges.

Affirming Việt Nam’s external policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, multilateralisation and diversification, the FM underlined that Việt Nam considered the US a partner of strategic importance, and highly valued the US’s support to a strong, independent, self-resilient and prosperous nation of Việt Nam.

He extended regards of Party General Secretary Trọng and senior leaders of Việt Nam to President Joe Biden, and invited Sullivan to visit Việt Nam.

The Vietnamese FM suggested that the two sides continue promoting cooperation across all key pillars of the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership, with priority to making preparations for delegation exchanges and meetings between the two countries, especially at high levels, maintaining existing dialogue mechanisms and seeking new ones, especially in issues of differences. The two sides should continue expanding economic-trade and science-technology cooperation, especially in innovation and human resources training, he said, proposing the US recognise Việt Nam’s market economy regulations soon, and strengthen cooperation in overcoming war consequences.

Sullivan pledged that the US would continue realising agreements reached by leaders of the two countries, and supporting Việt Nam in developing high technology industries, energy transition, climate change response, overcoming war aftermaths, and making bilateral relations more intensive, extensive, substantial and effective.

The two sides also discussed a number of regional and global issues of shared concern.

The same day, FM Sơn also had a meeting with Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Samantha Power who affirmed that the agency always prioritised the development of relations with Việt Nam, and vowed that the USAID would continue working for the implementation of the US-Việt Nam comprehensive strategic partnership and agreements reached by senior leaders of the two countries.

Reviewing the partnership between Việt Nam and the USAID in overcoming war consequences, supporting persons with disabilities, education-training, and health care, Sơn highly valued the USAID’s assistance to Việt Nam, and expressed his hope that the agency would continue providing resources for the implementation of dioxin detoxification in Biên Hoà Airport, searching for missing Vietnamese soldiers, enhancing Việt Nam’s capacity in DNA analysis, supporting persons with disabilities, and war victims. At the same time, the US should consider new areas of cooperation such as high-quality human resources training, climate change response, energy transition, while turning Fulbright University into a regional training centre.

Power briefed the Vietnamese FM on the situation of USAID projects in Việt Nam, underlining that the agency would continue focusing on cooperation in dealing with war aftermath, including dioxin detoxification in Biên Hoà, enhancing the DNA analysis for Vietnamese scientists, improving health care and social services in order to enhance the living conditions for persons with disabilities, and support Việt Nam in mitigating climate change impacts and promoting sustainable development, human resources training, health care infrastructure, and disease prevention and control.

The two sides concurred to continue to work closely together in approving and effectively developing USAID projects in Việt Nam, contributing to fostering the Việt Nam-US comprehensive strategic partnership. — VNS