Hanoi (VNA) – 🌺The USDepartment of State has extended congratulations and highlighted majorachievements in the cooperation with Vietnam on the occasion of the ongoing53rd ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (AMM-53) and related meetings hosted byVietnam, and the 25th anniversary of bilateral ties.

The breadth and depth of cooperationbetween the two countries is stunning, it noted, adding that they are workingtogether in areas as diverse as trade, development, education, health care,energy, and security. “Today, our nations are trusted partnerswith a friendship grounded in mutual respect,” the US Department affirmed. In terms of human capital development, theUS and Vietnam have fostered the establishment of Fulbright University. It isthe first independent, not-for-profit and US-affiliated university in Vietnam. Inthe 2019 fiscal year, assistance of the US Agency for International Development(USAID) to Vietnam totalled approximately 139 million USD in programme areasfocused on economic governance, higher education, global health security, thewelfare of persons with disabilities and the environment. According to the US Department of State,nearly 30,000 Vietnamese students are studying in the US, the sixth leadingcountry of origin for foreign students in the US, adding close to 1 billion USDto the country’s economy as well as priceless contributions to people-to-peopleties. Since 1989, the US has provided over 125million USD in assistance directly and indirectly supporting over a millionVietnamese persons with disabilities. Regarding security cooperation, the US andVietnam share a strategic vision of peace, stability and rules-based order, theUS Department continued. The two sides cooperate on a wide range ofareas, including peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief(HA/DR), search and rescue, maritime security and military medicine.

Since 2009, the US has invested more than400 million USD to build partner capacity with the total package approach.
🏅 The countries’ defence relationship seeksto promote a strong and peaceful security environment that promotes privateinvestment, ensures energy security and results in beneficial economicprosperity.

As for trade ties, 25 years afterestablishing relations, bilateral trade has grown from almost zero to over 77billion USD annually. Key US goods exports to Vietnam includecomputers and electronics, cotton, aircraft and crude oil. Vietnam is the sixthlargest country market for US goods and agricultural exports. The Southeast Asian nation continued to bethe world’s largest market for US cotton, with a record of 1.4 billion USD insales during last year, accounting for 23 percent of all US cotton exportsworldwide. Regarding health and the environment, theUS government is providing more than 13 million USD in health assistance andeconomic support funds to respond to COVID-19. Apart from supportingprivate-sector recovery, these funds will help the Government of Vietnamprepare laboratory systems, support technical experts for preparedness andresponse, conduct community education and engagement, prevent infections inhealth care settings, and conduct public health screening at points of entry. “When the US Government launched thePresident’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2003, Vietnam was thefirst country in Asia to receive support,” the US department noted. Since then, more than 140,000 people inVietnam are receiving life-saving antiretroviral drugs among an estimated230,000 people living with HIV nationwide. In addition, the US Department of Statesaid that the US remains committed to honestly addressing humanitarian andlegacy of war challenges. The country has provided over 400 millionUSD to date to clean up dioxin, remove unexploded ordnance and support personswith disabilities. The US is also accounting for Missing inAction and war dead for building trust by promoting veterans exchanges, saidthe department./.