10th Anniversary of Normalization

Mass organizations lay foundation for Viet Nam-US relations
06/11/2005 -- 22:09(GMT+7)

Ha Noi, June 10 (VNA) - People to-people exchanges and relations have laid the foundation for the Viet Nam-US relationship as well as backed healthy ideas and clear-sighted decisions of the two countries' leaders.

President of the Viet Nam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO) Vu Xuan Hong told the Vietnam News Agency reporters this on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the normalization of Viet Nam-US diplomatic ties.

Question: From the angle of the people-to-people relationship, what is your assessment of the Viet Nam-US relationship since the normalization of bilateral ties in 1995? In your opinion, what are mass organizations' roles in promoting the two countries' relationship?

Answer: Over the past ten years, the two countries have taken significant steps to develop bilateral ties. Regarding politics, the two countries have exchanged delegations of different sectors at all levels. The visits to Viet Nam by US President, Secretary of State and National Security Advisor and the visits to the US by Deputy Prime Ministers, Foreign Minister, and Ministers of Defense and Trade together with high-ranking meetings at multilateral forums and the exchanges of the delegations of parliamentarians and mass organizations have gradually created a framework for the stable and long-term relationship in the interest of the two peoples and for peace, stability and development in the region and the world at large. I would like to emphasize the contributions to the development of bilateral ties over the past 10 years by thousands of people and hundreds of delegations of representatives from mass organizations, non-governmental organizations.

Regarding overcoming the consequences of the war, the two sides have cooperated in solving the Americans missing in action (MIA) issue. Our people have whole-heartedly supported the Party and Government in the issue. We have collaborated with the US in organizing 81 excavations throughout the nation to search for the remains of US soldiers. We have also searched for the remains of Vietnamese soldiers for many times unilaterally but with the support of the whole people. The US has started cooperating in providing certain information to help Viet Nam search for the remains of Vietnamese soldiers. We hope that the US will do more in providing information on Vietnamese soldiers missing in the war.

Noteworthy, US non-governmental, charitable and humanitarian organizations together with Vietnamese people and mass organizations are leading in laying foundations to establish the relationship, promote mutual understanding, facilitating the two countries' leaderships to make political decisions to normalize and develop their ties. Over the past 10 years, almost 300 US non-governmental organizations have carried out thousands of projects on emergency aid, overcoming the aftermath of natural disasters and the wars, helping disabled people, children, and the elderly, and building schools and hospitals. In particular, the US is still evading issues relating to the aftermath of Agent Orange/dioxin while its non-governmental organizations are still approaching these issues. I would like to stress the roles of the US veterans associations and Vietnamese war veterans. Since the war ended, many US ex-servicemen have wanted to do good things for Viet Nam. In fact, they have done many things and they themselves and Vietnamese war veterans have promoted mutual understanding. Through the recent US visit, we found that the potential in the field remained untapped. We can continue relying on US people and friends' efforts to create foundations for the two countries' friendship and cooperation.

We have also cooperated with the US within our capability and conditions in anti-terrorism and solving global issues.

There are shortcomings in bilateral ties due to different political institutions, ideology, cultural values and because a small number of US people has not understood Viet Nam or there are still people who do not want to understand Viet Nam. For example, there are Viet Nam's "tra" and "basa" catfish and shrimp dumping lawsuits in the trade sector. There are still plots and activities that stir hatred, incite and distort the reality in Viet Nam as well as unilateral decisions on human rights, religious and national issues imposed on Viet Nam. We think that solving these issues imposed on Viet Nam. We think we should base ourselves on the spirit of mutual understanding and respect, remain calm and resort to dialogues to solve differences.

Q: In the capacity of VUFO President, what solutions are there for promoting the two countries' relationship in the coming time?

A: On the relationship of the two governments, the two countries should enhance the exchanges of visits, establish a framework for stable and long-term bilateral ties. In the meantime, new achievements in the two countries' relationship should be fostered and consolidated, focusing on bringing into play common benefits. Issues related to bilateral ties should be solved on the basis of direct dialogues in the spirit of mutual understanding and respect and looking towards the future. We call for dialogues at different levels such as between the two governments, the two peoples.

On people-to-people relationship, we would like to open channels of exchanges and dialogues. Experiences of the recent past show that although having preconceptions, complication or worries before visiting Viet Nam, almost all US friends' awareness, understanding and outlook change positively when they witness Viet Nam's reality and its people's hospitality, altruism, friendship, and tolerance. I think that people-to-people relationships have created a unique foundation for bilateral ties, supported by strong ideology and key decisions by the two countries' leaders, looking towards the improvement and development of the relationship to match with the two peoples' desires and for mutual benefits.

Q: Could you tell us about the VUFO's activities to raise the mutual understanding between the people of the two countries in the coming time?

A: The relations between Viet Nam and the US have specific historical issues as compared with the relations between Viet Nam and other countries. In recent years, the people-to-people relations have made a concrete contribution to boosting the mutual understanding and normalizing the relations between the two countries through all other channels. Many people have stressed the need to push up the people-to-people relations.

The VUFO will coordinate with its members such as the Viet Nam-US Friendship Association, the Viet Nam Fund for Peace and Development and the Viet Nam Peace Committee, and other mass organizations to carry out five measures. Firstly, we will increase the exchange of delegations and diversify partnership in the US. Alongside our traditional friends, we will try to access groups, forces, persons and organizations that have concerns in many respects of Viet Nam in order to help them get true information from people of today's life in Viet Nam and our views about the Viet Nam-US relations and in particulars the spirit of "shelving the past and looking toward the future."

Secondly, we will organize more mass activities. We have joined US friends to organize many home-stay visits and tours with themes in which we send visitors and visa versa, thus helping US people understand more about the cultural, spiritual and material life of the Vietnamese people. This kind of activities will be intensified in the coming time.

Thirdly, we will try to diversify forms of activities, make them more lively, practical and full of information. In the future, we will hold many talks, exchanges of information on sensitive issues such as human rights, democracy, religion, and socio-economic development in remote and isolated areas of Viet Nam, as well as information of the US's society and laws. Such seminars, with the attendance of experts and mass organizations, including overseas Vietnamese in the US, will have a positive effect on bilateral relations.

Fourthly, we will combine pushing up the friendly relations with boosting the relations in trade and investment, technology transfer, science and technology, and education, between partners and localities of the two countries. I think that the Viet Nam-US Friendship Association and other VUFO member organizations will serve as links for the relations between the two countries.

Finally, we think that due to the heavy consequences of the war in our country, the people will continue to call upon the US Government, organizations and individuals, or all US people to give more humanitarian and development aid in order to heal the war wounds, to assist war victims, including Agent Orange/dioxin victims, to help eliminate hunger and reduce poverty, to build education and health care infrastructure, to protect environment and boost development.

These would make the activities of the VUFO and its member organizations richer and more effective thus creating a mass foundation for the Viet Nam-US relations in the future.