Cablegate: Eap Deputy Assistant Secretary Eric John's Meeting
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HANOI 002546
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
DEPT PASS TO EAP/MLS; EAP/RSP; EAP/EP; DRL
STATE PASS TO USTR ELENA BRYAN
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON ETRD EINV PREL PHUM KIRF PGOV AMGT ABLD VM WTO RELFREE HUMANR HIV AIDS AFLU APEC TIP
SUBJECT: EAP Deputy Assistant Secretary Eric John's Meeting
with Foreign Minister Nguyen Zy Nien
1. (SBU) Summary: EAP Deputy Assistant Secretary Eric John
discussed bilateral relations and regional cooperation with
Foreign Minister Nguyen Zy Nien on September 27. After
emphasizing the value of senior-level visits and exchanges
and asking DAS John to help encourage more of them, FM Nien
requested that the United States help Vietnam enter the
World Trade Organization (WTO) quickly by reducing its
demands in the negotiating process. He offered support for
U.S. efforts to secure a new location for the U.S. Embassy
and pledged to continue improving cooperation on religious
freedom and human rights in Vietnam. End Summary.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PERSON-TO-PERSON DIPLOMACY
--------------------------------------------
2. (SBU) EAP Deputy Assistant Secretary Eric John, who was
joined by the Ambassador, EAP Mainland Southeast Asia
Director Scot Marciel and EconOff, met with Foreign Minister
Nguyen Zy Nien on September 27, the second in a series of
meetings on the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral relationship and
cooperation on regional issues. Having been briefed by
Assistant Foreign Minister Nguyen Duc Hung, who had just
concluded his own exchange with DAS John (septel), FM Nien
began the meeting by reviewing the results of his recent
trip to New York to participate in the annual meeting of the
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), expressing his
appreciation for the opportunity to speak with Secretary
Rice (as part of a larger meeting with ASEAN Foreign
Ministers). He noted that he had personally invited
Secretary Rice to Hanoi for the 2006 APEC Leaders' Meeting.
SIPDIS
High-level visits are extremely important to developing the
bilateral relationship, Nien added, citing Prime Minister
Phan Van Khai's June visit to the United States as an
example of how much these exchanges can accomplish. The
Foreign Minister asked DAS John to help increase the number
and frequency of these senior-level exchanges and visits,
emphasizing how very important they are to developing a
mutual understanding. DAS John agreed with these
observations, and added that creating a stronger business
environment and investment climate will also increase
opportunities for public diplomacy efforts, in addition to
improving the overall trade flow.
3. (SBU) FM Nien also mentioned another kind of person-to-
person diplomacy: the interactions and trade taking place
between Vietnamese-Americans and the Vietnamese people
living in Vietnam. He cited his recent visit to the home of
a Vietnamese-American family in Long Beach (on Long Island,
NY) that frequently travels back and forth to Vietnam on
business as one example of how much the younger generations
of Vietnamese people on both sides of the Pacific have
become more comfortable with each other, bringing business
and cultural opportunities to the United States and to
Vietnam through their exchanges.
AVIAN INFLUENZA AND HIV/AIDS
----------------------------
4. (SBU) Senior-level visits, FM Nien added, also help the
Unites States and Vietnam cooperate on health issues such as
HIV/AIDS and avian influenza. The latter problem, he said,
is something Vietnam continues to try to control, but bird
migrations make it difficult to do so. He noted that
President Bush's remarks on the importance of the
International Partnership on Avian and Pandemic Influenza
(IPAPI) were well received at the UNGA.
WTO
---
5. (SBU) The Foreign Minister then turned to the issue of
Vietnam's accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO).
"The United States is the most important country left [that
has not given its approval]," he opined. He added that "if
the United States says it is ok, then all [the remaining
countries] will say it is ok." He concluded by saying that
he hopes the United States will reduce the number of demands
it is still making in the negotiating rounds since it would
be better if Vietnam could accede to the WTO by December.
DAS John replied that Vietnam's WTO accession will take
place more quickly if Vietnam improves the quality of its
offer. A better trade picture, he added, benefits both the
United States and Vietnam, as the results of our Bilateral
Trade Agreement demonstrate.
APEC
----
6. (SBU) Referring to Vietnam's designation as the host of
the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2006, FM Nien
shared that Vietnam is already working on security issues to
prepare for senior-level visitors, especially President
Bush. DAS John replied that APEC is an excellent
opportunity for Vietnam to showcase its strengths and to
establish new bilateral opportunities for businesses and
investors. He added that U.S. Senior Official for APEC and
EAP/FO Economic Coordinator Mike Michalak will be visiting
Hanoi in early October to further discuss APEC 2006 with
Vietnamese officials.
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, TRAFFICKING, AND HUMAN RIGHTS
--------------------------------------------- ---
7. (SBU) FM Nien voiced his regret over the fact that
Vietnam is still listed as a Country of Particular Concern
(CPC) for religious freedom. Hopefully, the CPC list will
not stand in the way of a better understanding of human
rights in Vietnam. He cited his own family's strong
Buddhist beliefs and his experiences in visiting Catholic
communities, and stressed that he understands well that
religion is a beneficial element in social development.
Local problems that result from a miscommunication with
provincial and district authorities are few and far between,
he argued, and added that religious groups actually support
- not threaten - the autonomy and authority of local
officials. DAS John replied that the United States does not
want Vietnam to be on the CPC list either, but that there
are still some improvements that need to take place,
especially in the implementation of laws protecting
religious freedom, before Vietnam can be removed from it.
Recognizing that implementation at the local level is
difficult, DAS John noted that increased education and
training for those officials might improve their
understanding of how to properly protect religious freedoms.
Vietnam's improvements in countering drug trafficking is a
model to follow, since those efforts resulted in Vietnam's
removal from the Majors' List. FM Nien agreed that this was
a positive step forward and that Vietnam would continue to
do its best in these areas.
8. (SBU) In response to DAS John's comment that the United
States hopes to resume its results-based Human Rights
Dialogue with Vietnam once our Assistant Secretary for
Democracy, Human Rights and Labor is in office, FM Nien
thanked DAS John and observed that cooperation on this issue
and others from the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of
National Defense and Vietnamese military is critical, since
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would otherwise be left
isolated in its efforts to expand the overall bilateral
relationship.
NEW EMBASSY
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9. (SBU) FM Nien expressed appreciation for the Mission's
hard work in establishing a new location for the U.S.
Embassy, noting that the agreed minute of the July talks is
complete and that only a few formalities remain, formalities
which should be taken care of before the end of the week.
He explained that Vietnam wants to have good relations with
big powers like the United States and China, and thus
supports our request for a more appropriate home for our
operations.
10. (SBU) DAS John cleared this cable.
MARINE