Vietnam Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh has reaffirmed the government’s commitment to make the development of the Vietnam-US comprehensive partnership central to its foreign policy strategy for decades to come.

In 2015, both nations spared no effort to strengthen the partnership for the sake of peace and stability in the region and in the world, Vinh said in a recent interview on VOV.

Following are key excerpts from the interview in which Ambassador Vinh addresses the successes for the year 2014 and the upcoming celebration of the 20 year anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties.

The year 2013 was considered a milestone in the history of the Vietnam-US relations after both nations established a comprehensive partnership during the US trip by President Truong Tan Sang. What, in your opinion, has been the most notable progress in the bilateral ties since then?

The establishment of the comprehensive partnership has become an important framework for bilateral relations. Over the past years, Vietnam worked closely with the US on 11 priority cooperation areas, principally politics, economics, science, education and security and trade.

At the forefront is bilateral trade, which has reached US$35 billion and education for which currently 16,000 Vietnamese students are studying in the US. The US government has supported education cooperation programmes such as providing scholarships and training students in Vietnam and in the US.

Remarkable progress has also been seen in defense and security cooperation, evidenced by the reached agreement on civil nuclear and the US’ partial lifting of arms embargo against Vietnam. We are discussing with the US on how to completely remove the ban.

In addition, the two sides have conducted regular high-level exchange visits between ministries and sectors.

Along with bilateral relations, multilateral relations at the international and regional forums have been bolstered with the formation of the ASEAN-US cooperation framework.

In 2014, Vietnam's Defense Minister visited the US and the first Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff also toured Vietnam. The two countries created a framework for continuous cooperation in dealing with the consequences of war, such as detoxification of dioxin-affected areas and medical assistance for people with disabilities by post-war effects.

These accomplishments have laid a substantial and extensive cooperation framework that will be central to our relations for decades and enhance mutual understanding and broaden bilateral cooperation in politics, economics, culture and defense and security.

The relationship between the two sides still has difficulties, such as non-trade barriers or differences in democracy and human rights-related issues. However, the comprehensive partnership framework has offered them favourable conditions to have frank discussions to understand each other better.

The US is committed to respecting the political regime and independence and sovereignty of Vietnam. I think this is the foundation for our relations continue to grow and flourish in the coming decades.

Vietnam and the US are to celebrate 20 years of normalized relations in 2015. What is priorities and focus of the agenda next year?

Looking back to the 20-year path since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have overcome numerous difficulties in order to achieve the comprehensive partnership framework in 2013.

The primary and most important task in 2015 is how to steer the Vietnam-US relations     on the right track for further growth.

There will be a host of celebratory activities in the lead up to the 20th anniversary of normalization of relations. We should further foster the relationship through exchange visits during which agreements may be reached.

I think the embassies of the two countries should plan celebrations in July, a time when the two sides decided to normalize relations in 1995.

In terms of cooperation areas, there is room for the two nations to promote trade links, science and technology and education.

We welcome the US for partially lifting its arms embargo against Vietnam and wish the embargo would be totally removed in the near future.

One of the key points in promoting relations between the two countries is how to create plentiful opportunities to strengthen people-to-people exchange, tourism and education towards developing a more substantial comprehensive partnership.

In 2014, the US witnessed political upheavals as the Republicans won the Democrats in the midterm elections and will hold power in the US Congress next year. In your opinion, how will these fluctuations affect the US-Vietnam relations in the future?

Looking at the length of the Vietnam-US relations, promoting relations with Vietnam in a comprehensive way is the policy of both parties, not just administration of President Barack Obama. So I believe that in the time to come, whether any party is in a majority or minority in the Congress, bilateral ties will continue to grow under the reached comprehensive cooperation framework.

I have met many officials and US Congressmen of the Democratic and Republican parties that are very supportive of furthering relations with Vietnam in a multitude of areas not only bilaterally but also under the regional forum framework such as ASEAN.

During the year, the diplomatic sector made important contributions to the struggle to defend the sovereignty of Vietnamese sea and islands. What is your assessment of Vietnam’s role of diplomacy in the US?

Vietnam’s consistent stance on the East Sea issue is to ensure a stable environment, security and safety and maritime freedom in the East Sea. Regional disputes must be resolved by peaceful means on the basis of respect for international law, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and regional agreements, including the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) towards achieving a Code of Conduct (COC) soon.

In this context, our diplomatic activities in the US and elsewhere have been concentrated on stepping up communications on the nation’s stance that shows the international community has increasingly acknowledged, shared and supported Vietnam in this regard.

Our seminars, meetings and discussions with politicians, scholars, US Congress and government representatives have helped both sides better understand the need for peaceful settlement of the East Sea issue.

In recent years, many conferences in the US aimed to share support for compliance with international law. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have issues resolutions on ensuring stability and freedom of navigation in the East Sea as well as complying with international law and the UNCLOS.

These have created a favorable environment for protecting the territorial sovereignty while providing a framework for other regional nations to discuss how to safeguard a peaceful and stable environment, including their combined efforts to promote the implementation of the DOC.

VOV/VNN