A number of newswires and prestigious organisations have published articles commenting on the US visit by Việt Nam’s Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc. — VNA/VNS Photo Thống Nhất

HÀ NỘI – A number of newswires and prestigious organisations have published articles commenting on the US visit by Việt Nam’s Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc. 
An article published by Bloomberg.com on Monday says PM Phúc will attempt to convince President Donald Trump to advance trade ties that blossomed under the Obama administration. 
In an interview granted to Bloomberg Television, the PM says he plans to highlight all the US jobs that Việt Nam supports through the imports of American goods like airplanes, engine turbines and maize, thus, promises of American jobs will persuade the host to focus more on the strategic benefits of closer trade and security ties. 
“The Trump administration is very interested in advancing the relationship with Việt Nam because it sees the strategic role Việt Nam plays in Asia,” he says. 
In recent years, Việt Nam and the US have also found common ground on issues regarding regional security. 
The same day, the Asia Sentinel ran an article by former US diplomat David Brown, saying that during the Obama years, Washington and Hà Nội forged a strategic entente – unofficial, of course, but increasingly real, and Barack Obama’s visit to Việt Nam last May was therefore a triumph. 
The article says the US and Việt Nam might agree to explore a bilateral trade pact that would entail many Trans-Pacific Partnership-like trade reforms. To the extent that’s true (official confirmation is lacking on both sides), jump-starting bilateral trade talks will be at the top of PM Phúc’s agenda when he visits Washington this week. 
Commenting on the visit, Dr. Jonathan D. London, a leading scholar of contemporary Việt Nam and the global economy-politics at the Netherlands’s Leiden University underscores the importance of the visit, saying that a great deal has changed in Việt Nam and in its relations with the US, particularly in the two decades since the governments of the two countries normalised ties, and especially within the last several years. The two countries have come to view each other as indispensable strategic partners, especially in trade and security matters. Therefore, the visit not only portends the development of US-Việt Nam bilateral relations and the future prospects of Việt Nam’s development, but the White House’s intentions with respect to East Asia. 
Meanwhile, the Washington Times daily on May 29 ran a message by Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc entitled “Việt Nam’s Prime Minister White House visit offers US opportunity to define Asia policy”. 
Reviewing bilateral ties over the past two decades, it says trade between the two nations has nearly tripled in the last seven years, and now tops US$52 billion. The US exports to Việt Nam increased by 43.2 per cent in 2016, the largest increase among America’s top 30 trade partners and the only one with double-digit growth. 
In conclusion, the article suggests the US take steps required to recognise Việt Nam’s market economy status, ensure maritime security and safety with increased joint naval exercises, and enhance educational linkages between American universities and Vietnamese higher education institutions. 
It recommends cooperating in the field of science research on regional and global climate change issues, especially in the Lower Mekong Delta while addressing the impacts of Agent Orange and the removal of unexploded ordnance in Việt Nam. — VNS