Speaking at the conference, US Ambassador to Vietnam, Ted Osius, said Vietnamese - US relations had advanced to a new level after Communist Party of Vietnam General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng’s visit earlier this month. The ambassador reiterated that both sides had said they respected each other’s political systems, as recognised and stated in the common statement that was issued during the trip.
Osius stressed the significance of the term ‘ban be’ (friends) used by General Secretary Trong at a lunch hosted by Vice President Joe Biden to describe the relationship between the two countries.
He recalled the mutual respect between the two countries regarding the political systems of each other, which was included in the 2013 Vietnam-US Joint Statement by Presidents Truong Tan Sang and Barack Obama during President Sang’s visit to the US.
The respect was once again repeated during the meeting between General Secretary Trong and President Obama in the Oval Office, and in the Vietnam-US Joint Statement at the end of the visit, the ambassador said.
Despite differences in political systems, the two countries have become partners and are deepening ties in economics, trade, national defence, security and education, and between the two nations’ people, he added.
