President Biden Wraps Up International Trip with a State Visit to Vietnam
President Biden participated in a meeting with General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng. After the meeting, the two leaders delivered remarks (Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz).
During Biden’s visit, Vietnam elevated the United States to the highest level of diplomatic status that only a handful of countries have received from the Vietnamese.
Article by Ryan Hartnett, Junior White House Producer
HANOI, Vietnam – Following the 2023 G-20 New Delhi Summit in India, President Biden traveled to Vietnam on Sunday for a 24-hour state visit in the capital of Hanoi. The visit to Vietnam marks the first time President Biden has visited the country during his presidential term.
The purpose for Biden’s visit is to strengthen ties with the Vietnamese government and achieve shared goals of peace, prosperity and sustainable development through a series of diplomatic meetings.
President Biden said to reporters in Hanoi, “This was an important moment for the United States to demonstrate our global leadership and our commitment to solving the challenges that matter most to people around the world.”
Biden met with a number of Vietnamese leaders including Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng, Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong, and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
During Biden’s visit, Vietnam elevated the United States to a comprehensive strategic partnership, the highest level of diplomatic status that only four other countries have received. The four countries that have the same diplomatic status with the Vietnamese are India, Russia, South Korea and China.
The new strategic partnership comes at a time when Vietnam is seeking independence from their northern neighbors in China and the United States is seeking partners across the Indo-Pacific Region amidst economic tension with Beijing.
Biden reiterated that his goal is not to isolate China and commence a Cold War with Beijing but rather to ensure that the Chinese abide by the rules of economics along with their fellow diplomats.
“Today, we can trace a 50 year arc between our nations from conflict to normalization,” Biden said at a press conference on Sunday evening. "This is a new elevated status that will be a force for prosperity and security in one of the most consequential regions in the world.”
The comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries allows for collaboration on advancements in cloud computing, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence.
On Monday, the President concluded his trip with a visit to the John Sidney McCain III Memorial. The memorial is dedicated to late Arizona senator, John McCain, who was held as a prisoner of the Vietnam War for five and a half years. The President had a long friendship with McCain, who passed away from brain cancer in 2018, as both men served in the United States Senate together for 3 decades.
At the memorial, Biden paid his respects to his longtime colleague as he laid one of his command coins at the memorial and saluted. “It was important to me to visit the memorial,” President Biden said on Monday morning. “He was a good friend. I miss him.”