Video: the US Embassy in Vietnam

At the airport, Lieutenant General Vu Chien Thang, Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of National Defense of Vietnam welcomed US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

The US Embassy in Vietnam also posted greetings to US Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin, and special thanks to Lieutenant General Vu Chien Thang for the warm welcome.

The official visit of the US Secretary of Defense to Vietnam takes place at the invitation of General Phan Van Giang, Vietnam's Defense Minister.

This is the first official visit to Vietnam by a senior US official of US President Joe Biden's administration.

According to Le Thi Thu Hang, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the visit of the US Secretary of Defense will greatly contribute to strengthening the friendly and trusted relationship between the citizens and militaries of both nations. This is along with helping to carry out the agreements reached by senior leaders within the Vietnam-US comprehensive partnership framework.

Prior to the trip, the US donated three million Moderna vaccine doses to Vietnam through the COVAX Facility. Of the number, 1,499,960 doses were delivered to Ho Chi Minh City on July 24 and 1,500,100 doses to Hanoi on July 25.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, 67, is a four-star general who previously served in the US Army. He became the first African-American Secretary of Defence in American history when he was appointed on January 22, two days after Joe Biden became the 46th US President.

Thanh Nam

U.S. defense chief Lloyd Austin to visit Vietnam

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will travel to Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines from later this week, according to the press release of the U.S. Department of Defense released on July 19.