Biden to visit Vietnam after G20 summit in India – DW – 08/28/2023

United States President Joe Biden is traveling to Vietnam next month for a meeting with the leader of the ruling Communist Party Nguyen Phu Trong and other Vietnamese leaders, the White House announced on Monday.

Biden will arrive in Hanoi on September 10 after attending the annual summit of the G20 leaders in India. The one-day in Vietnam comes as Washington seeks to counter China’s influence in the region.

“The leaders will explore opportunities to promote the growth of a technology-focused and innovation-driven Vietnamese economy,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement.

The meeting will also focus on “education exchanges and workforce development programs,” combating climate change, and increasing peace, prosperity, and stability in the region,” the statement said.

Building partnership despite difficult past

Biden had announced in early August that he would soon be traveling to Vietnam, saying that Hanoi “wants to change our relationship and become a partner.” The US, for years has sought to strengthen relations with Vietnam.

Biden and Trong spoke by phone in March, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited the southeast Asian nation one month later. Washington considers Hanoi one of its top partners in the region, especially as the memory of the Vietnam War fades.

However, Vietnam must also weigh any reaction by a powerful neighbor, China. Trong last year became the first foreign leader to meet President Xi Jinping in Beijing after the Chinese leader secured a precedent-breaking third term.

US and Vietnam share concerns about China

In addition to increasingly close trade links, the US and Vietnam both share concern over China’s growing strength. Friction has been increasing for years between Beijing and Southeast Asian nations, particularly Vietnam and the Philippines, over China’s sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea.

The White House also announced that to mark the the 22nd anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States.

dh/lo (AP, AFP, Reuters)