American–Vietnamese relations

United States	Vietnam
Diplomatic mission
United States Embassy, Hanoi	Vietnamese Embassy, Washington, D.C.
Envoy
AmbassadorMarc Knapper	Ambassador Nguyễn Quốc Dũng

Formal relations between the United States and Vietnam were initiated in the nineteenth century under former American presidentAndrew Jackson, but relations soured after the United States refused to protect theĐại Nam from aFrench invasion.^{[citation needed]}

During theSecond World War, the U.S. covertly assisted theViet Minh in fightingJapanese forces inFrench Indochina, though a formal alliance was not established. After the dissolution of French Indochina in 1954, the U.S. supported the anticommunistSouth Vietnam as opposed to communistNorth Vietnam and fought North Vietnam directly during theVietnam War. After American withdrawal in 1973 and the subsequent fall ofSouth Vietnam in 1975, the U.S. applied atrade embargo and severed ties with Vietnam, mostly out of concerns relating toVietnamese boat people and theVietnam War POW/MIA issue. Attempts at re-establishing relations went unfulfilled for decades, until U.S. presidentBill Clinton began normalizing diplomatic relations in the 1990s. In 1994, the U.S. lifted its 30-year trade embargo on Vietnam, though othersanctions remained.^[1] While trade was allowed to flow, it was not on normal terms as Vietnamese exports to the U.S. still faced high tariffs in the range of 40%-80%.^[1] The following year, both countries establishedembassies andconsulates. Relations between the two countries continued to improve into the 21st century.

Vietnam is now considered to be a potential ally of the United States, especially in the geopolitical context of theterritorial disputes in the South China Sea and in thecontainment ofChinese expansionism.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} Vietnam, one of the countries with the most favorable public opinion regarding the U.S., is the only communist country to have such a favorable view.^{[7][8][9][10][11]} Every U.S. president since diplomatic normalization in 1995 has visited Vietnam at least once, highlighting the importance of Vietnam in the U.S.'s growingpivot to Asia; these visits have been welcomed by the Vietnamese populace despite political differences.^{[12][13][14][15]}

Over 2.1 millionVietnamese Americans are largely immigrants who moved to the United States after theVietnam War. They comprise nearly half of alloverseas Vietnamese.^[16]

The first American to visit Vietnam was Captain Jeremiah Briggs ofThe Fame, a commercial ship, set sail fromSalem,Massachusetts and arrived atHuế on May 23, 1803.^{[17]: 3–5} The second was US Navy Lieutenant John White, commanding theUSS Franklin (1795) on a commercial trip to Vietnam. White arrived in Huế on June 12, 1819, but then proceeded toManila after learning that the Emperor of Vietnam was absent from the city in Northern Vietnam. He and John Brown, Captain of theMarmion arrived atSaigon on October 9, 1819, and continued to stay at the city for another four months. He observed economy, political landscape, culture, and notably the rise ofMinh Mạng and his anti-Western and anti-trade attitudes.^{[17]: 6–14}

In 1829, U.S. presidentAndrew Jackson sent a diplomatic delegation led byEdmund Roberts on theUSSPeacock to theNguyễn dynasty to establish bilateral relations and expand trade between the two countries. The ship arrived in Vũng Lấm,Phú Yên province on 2 January 1833.^[18] The ruler of Vietnam at the time, EmperorMinh Mạng, was not eager to allow foreigners to freely enter Vietnam and engage in trade. The emperor required that Americans follow Vietnamese laws, and only allowed them to do business inĐà Nẵng,Central Vietnam. After receiving this unwelcome message, Edmund Roberts and his delegation left Vietnam.^[17]: 24 Vietnamese account for the US delegation arrival was brief:

Winter, 11th month. 13th year of Minh-Mang (January 1833): The President of the Republic Nha-di-ly, located on the Atlantic Ocean and known also by the names Hoa-Ky (花旗), Ma-ly-can (American), Tan-anh-cat-ly (新英吉利 New England), sent his subjects Mr. Nghia-duc-mon-La-bach (Edmund Roberts), Captain Duc-giai Tam-gia (David Geisinger), and their party, to our country, bearers of a letter transmitting the desire to enter into relations with us. Their ship anchored at Vung-Lam, port ofPhu Yen. Our Government ordered Chief of the Office of MinistriesNguyen Tri Phuong and the Deputy Chief of the Office of Ministries Ly Van Phuc to join with the mandarins of the said province to go aboard the ship and to give there a welcoming banquet. Questioned about the purpose of their voyage, these foreigners answered that their intent was to create good commercial relations. Their words were marked with respect and courtesy...^[17]: 32

Roberts returned to Vietnam for the second time on May 14, 1836, as his second attempt to establish relation with Minh Mang, but he succumbed to severe illness which halted his efforts. According to the ship doctorWilliam Ruschenberger, Minh Mạng sent an emissary to Đà Nẵng to see the American delegation. The emissary demanded Roberts to deliver the President's letter to him, which was refused, due to Roberts' illness and lack of adequate interpreters.^[17]: 38 After shaking hands with the Vietnamese representative, Ruschenberger and the USSPeacock departed Vietnam forMacao. Edmund Roberts died there on June 12 before the delegation could achieve anything.^[17]: 39 Minh Mang promptly responded:

Crossing the oceans and a distance of forty thousand stades (20,000 miles), driven by sentiments of admiration for the power and virtue of our Government, they have come all this way. If we were resolutely to break all relations with them, we would prove to them that we lack generous goodwill...We did not oppose their coming. We did not pursue them on their departure. We behaved according to the manners of a civilized nation. What good would it do for us to complain of foreign barbarians?^[17]: 40

US Navy tried to intervene in Vietnam in 1845, 1850, and 1861, as it did in Japan in 1853.^{[17]: 52–69}

The U.S. and Vietnam had informal relations duringWorld War II, though not directly with French Indochina. While the U.S. had good relations with theFrench Third Republic, after the latterfell toNazi Germany in 1940, Germany establishedVichy France, which took over administration of the French colonies, including French Indochina. Vichy France allowed theEmpire of Japan to accessFrench Indochina, and in July 1941 Japan extended its control to the whole of French Indochina.

During thePacific War, American agents of theOffice of Strategic Services, led byUnited States Army officerArchimedes Patti, arrived in Vietnam and met with theViet Minh, a communist independence movement led by pro-American revolutionaryHo Chi Minh.^[19] The OSS and the Viet Minh cooperated together to fightJapanese forces in French Indochina, and the OSS trained the Viet Minh, who gave the OSS agents shelter. ThePeople's Army of Vietnam, founded in 1944 in the mountains of northwest Vietnam, had been backed and supported by the OSS and trained by American military personnel, including Patti, who greatly respected the Vietnamese. The first commander of the PAVN wasVõ Nguyên Giáp, who was trained under the watch of the Americans.

The relations between the Viet Minh and the OSS marked the beginning of American involvement in Vietnam. Later, Ho Chi Minh asked to set up an alliance with the United States, which was approved by U.S. presidentFranklin D. Roosevelt with support from U.S. GeneralDwight D. Eisenhower. Diplomacy was strained following further events in French Indochina, including the death of OSS officerA. Peter Dewey, who was shot by Viet Minh fighters during the1945 Vietnam uprising; the Viet Minh claimed they mistook Dewey for a French soldier, and Ho Chi Minh reportedly apologized to the U.S. and ordered a search for Dewey's body,^[20] though Vietnamese historianTrần Văn Giàu reported that Dewey's body was dumped in a nearby river and was never recovered.^[20]

Ho wrote several letters to U.S. presidentHarry S. Truman and Secretary of State James Byrnes seeking diplomatic recognition for Vietnam.^[21]: 100 The development of the Cold War and desires to maintain good relations with France prompted the U.S. not to recognize Vietnam.^[21]: 100 From 1950 to 1954, the U.S. supported France and theState of Vietnam against communist Viet Minh.

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From 1950, the United States recognized and supported the non-communistState of Vietnam against the communist-dominatedDemocratic Republic of Vietnam during the later stages of theFirst Indochina War. In the1954 Geneva Conference, French Indochina was dismantled and superseded by the independent states ofNorth Vietnam,South Vietnam,Cambodia, andLaos. However, with theCold War ongoing, the concern became political ideologies. Vietnam had been split into two opposing countries: North Vietnam, acommunist state that opposed American ideals, and South Vietnam, ananticommunist state generally aligned with the US geopolitical outlook that communism needed to be contained. The two countries were divided at the17th parallel north, not unlike the38th parallel north that dividedNorth Korea andSouth Korea in theKorean War. The Geneva Conference provided that a general election be held by July 1956 to create a unified Vietnamese state, but they were not directly signed onto nor accepted by delegates of South Vietnam and the U.S., and South Vietnamese leaderNgo Dinh Diem refused to allow elections.

The U.S. supported South Vietnam, having already supported France during the First Indochina War. The U.S. sent American military advisors to train and assist theArmy of the Republic of Vietnam, and spent massive amounts of money in efforts to modernize the country; however, this created tensions between the U.S. and North Vietnam. Tensions reached a breaking point following the 1964Gulf of Tonkin incident, when the U.S. accused theVietnam People's Navy of attacking theUSSMaddox and otherUnited States Navy vessels on two separate occasions. While the first incident barely damaged the USSMaddox and resulted in 10 Vietnamese casualties (4 killed and 6 wounded), the second incident was contentious, and was proven to not have happened in the 2000s.^[22] However, at the time, U.S. PresidentLyndon B. Johnson used both incidents as justification to take any necessary retaliatory measures; the U.S. Congress promptly passed theGulf of Tonkin Resolution, which authorized the deployment of American forces in Vietnam.

The Gulf of Tonkin incident started American involvement in theSecond Indochina War, known in theWestern world as the "Vietnam War". For 11 years, the U.S., South Vietnam, and their allies fought North Vietnam, theNational Liberation Front, and their allies. Though the U.S. and South Vietnam usedair superiority,close air support, andCentral Intelligence Agency-led intelligence operations to their advantage, North Vietnam and the Viet Cong made use ofguerrilla warfare, though their tactics gradually became more conventional as the war progressed. The Vietnam War was a massive undertaking for all involved: North Vietnam and the Viet Cong had around 690,000 soldiers by 1966, South Vietnam had a strength of 1.5 million soldiers by 1972, and the U.S. deployed a total of 2.7 million soldiers over the course of American involvement, peaking at 543,000 in April 1969. The U.S. spent roughly $140 billion ($950 billion in 2011)^[23] in direct expenses to South Vietnam to build infrastructure, train an army and police force, and modernize the country.^[24] Casualties and destruction caused by the war were immense, with the conflict killing between 1.3 million and 3.4 million people, a combined total of combatants and non-combatants from both sides. American society was greatly polarized by the war, which coincided with the height of thecounterculture phenomenon andcivil rights movement;opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War was related to these movements, but was a major and significant movement in its own right. American sympathies toward and perspectives on Vietnam depended on political stance, and the U.S. government itself experienced divisions between pro-war and anti-war politicians.

To the United States, the Vietnam War was a Cold War conflict of political ideologies. Though the U.S. outwardly intervened in the interests of freedom, determination, and sovereignty, this was only when communism was not a major factor. However, North Vietnam was a communist country with relations to communistChina and theSoviet Union, and was already surrounded and assisted by communist organizations elsewhere in Indochina such as theKhmer Rouge and thePathet Lao, providing credence to the idea that communism was a global and monolithic force. By defeating North Vietnam, communist "tyranny and aggression" could be contained, and the security of Indochina could be preserved, with a unified Vietnam under Southern rule serving as a bulwark against communism in the region.

To North Vietnam, the war against the U.S. was simply an extension of their greater war for independence. In their view, the U.S. had merely replaced the French's role as another major-power colonialist obstacle to independence, Vietnamese reunification under Northern rule, and the rise of communism and postcolonial states in Indochina.

In 1969, with the Vietnam War becoming increasingly unpopular in the United States, U.S. presidentRichard Nixon enacted a plan of "Vietnamization", where U.S. military forces withdrew from combat roles and instead only provided intelligence, support, and logistics, with the end goal being a self-sufficient South Vietnam capable of fighting the conflict themselves. By 1972, U.S. forces had largely withdrawn, and their operations were limited to air support, artillery support, advisors, andmateriel shipments. On 27 January 1973, theParis Peace Accords were signed by the U.S., North Vietnam, South Vietnam, and Viet Cong representatives. The Accords called for a ceasefire, withdrawal of all U.S. forces, continuance in place of North Vietnamese troops in the South, and the eventual reunification of Vietnam "through peaceful means". In reality, once the last U.S. combat troops left Vietnam in March 1973,^[25] and the U.S. was effectively barred from providing military assistance in Indochina under the 1973Case–Church Amendment,^[26] there was no effective way to prevent North Vietnam from overwhelming South Vietnam's defenses, and the Accords proved unenforceable.

North Vietnam and South Vietnam continued to fight for two more years, from 1973 to 1975, but South Vietnam, having to fight without the American support to which it had become accustomed, and lacking the financial support to pay its troops or supply them properly, suffered severe losses of personnel and territory to North Vietnamese forces. In March 1975, North Vietnamese GeneralVõ Nguyên Giáp of North Vietnam, planning to test American resolution, sent GeneralVăn Tiến Dũng to launch anattack on Buôn Ma Thuột; when the U.S. Congress blocked attempts to support South Vietnam, Giáp launched a full-scale invasion of South Vietnam, and by late April, North Vietnamese forces had surrounded the South Vietnamese capital ofSaigon. The U.S. launchedOperation Frequent Wind, sending U.S. NavyTask Force 76 to evacuate Saigon before North Vietnamese forces could capture the city, initially only to evacuate American embassy staff but eventually accepting South Vietnamese civilians and military personnel as they boarded evacuation flights or flew their own aircraft to the evacuation fleets, to the point that aircraft that were not being used had to be pushed offaircraft carriers to make space for more. In Operation Frequent Wind, a total of 1,373 Americans and 5,595 Vietnamese and third-country nationals were evacuated by helicopter,^[27]: 258 and the total number of Vietnamese evacuated by Frequent Wind or self-evacuated and ending up in the custody of the United States for processing as refugees to enter the United States totaled 138,869.^[28]: 92 Shortly after,North Vietnamese forces captured Saigon, ending the Vietnam War with a decisive North Vietnamese victory and initiating thereunification of Vietnam into the modernSocialist Republic of Vietnam. Saigon was renamed toHo Chi Minh City, but the capital of Vietnam remained inHanoi.

"Agent Orange" was aherbicide anddefoliant used by the U.S. as part ofOperation Ranch Hand, aherbicidal warfare program initiated by the U.S. military. Developed from 1962 to 1971, Agent Orange consists of a fifty-fifty mixture of2,4,5-T and2,4-D, over 20 million gallons of it were produced by the U.S. over the course of the war. Agent Orange was primarily intended to destroy the foliage used as concealment by North Vietnamese soldiers.

The 2,4,5-T used to produce Agent Orange was later discovered to be contaminated with2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin, an extremely toxicdioxin compound. Agent Orange's use led to the deaths of thousands of people, the destruction of over 3.1 million hectares (31,000 km² or 11,969 mi²) of Vietnam's forests, and up to a million Vietnamese and Americans alike experiencingbirth defects,disabilities, and health problems resulting from the toxic chemicals used in Agent Orange.^[29][30] TheViet Nam Red Cross Society estimates that up to 1 million people are disabled or have health problems due to the effects of Agent Orange, but the U.S. government has dismissed these figures as unreliable and unrealistically high.^[31]

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Following American withdrawal from the Vietnam War in 1973, the U.S. listed about 2,500 Americans asprisoners of war (POW) ormissing in action (MIA), but only 1,200 Americans were reported to have been killed in action with no body recovered. Only 591 American POWs were returned duringOperation Homecoming in early 1973. Many American MIAs were pilots who were shot down over North Vietnam or Laos. Investigations of these incidents have involved determining whether the men involved survived being shot down; if they did not survive, then the U.S. government considers efforts to recover their remains. The U.S. POW and MIA issue greatly affected attempts at normalizing diplomatic ties between the U.S. and Vietnam in the aftermath of the Vietnam War.

As of 2007, the U.S. government listed 1,763 Americans unaccounted for inSoutheast Asia, including 1,353 in Vietnam. Since 1973, 883 Americans have been accounted for, including 627 in Vietnam. Additionally, theU.S. Department of Defense has confirmed that of the 196 individuals who were officially considered "last known alive", the U.S. government has determined the fate of all but 31. The U.S. considers achieving the fullest possible accounting of Americans missing and unaccounted for in Indochina to be one of its highest priorities with Vietnam.

Following the Vietnam War, Vietnam pursued the establishment of diplomatic relations with the United States. This was initially to obtain US$3.3 billion in reconstruction aid, which U.S. president Richard Nixon had secretly promised after the Paris Peace Accords were signed, in the form of a letter offering a specific figure.^[32] In June 1975, Vietnamese PremierPhạm Văn Đồng, speaking to theNational Assembly, invited the U.S. to normalize relations with Vietnam and to honor its commitment to provide reconstruction funds. Representatives of two American banks—theBank of America andFirst National City Bank—were invited toHanoi to discuss trade possibilities, and American oil companies were informed that they were welcome to apply for concessions to search for oil in Vietnamese waters.

However, the U.S. government neglected Đồng's call for normalized relations, because it was predicated on reparations, and the American political climate in the wake of the war precluded the pursuit of such an outcome. The U.S. also applied atrade embargo against Vietnam in 1975. In response to Vietnam, the administration of U.S. presidentGerald Ford imposed its own precondition for normal relations by announcing that a full accounting of American POWs and MIA, including the return of any remains, would be required before normalization attempts. No concessions were made on either side until U.S. presidentJimmy Carter softened the American demand from a full accounting to simply the fullestpossible accounting, and dispatched a diplomatic mission to Vietnam in 1977 to initiate normalization discussions.

Although Vietnam was initially adamant about American economic assistance (their first postwar economic plan counted on the amount promised by President Nixon), the condition was dropped in mid-1978, when Vietnamese Foreign MinisterNguyễn Cơ Thạch and the U.S. government reached an agreement in principle on normalization, but the date was left vague. When Thạch urged November 1978, the U.S. government was noncommittal: at that time, the U.S. was preoccupied with a large influx inVietnamese boat people, and they were already attempting to normalizerelations with China;relations between Vietnam and China were strained at the time—eventually deteriorating into theSino-Vietnamese War in 1979—and the U.S. did not wish to risk their relations with China by normalizing relations with one of China's enemies. The Vietnamese government responded byformalizing their relations with theSoviet Union. Their original hope, however, had been to gain both diplomatic recognition from the United States and a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union, as a double guarantee against future Chinese interference. In the U.S., the issue of normalizing relations with Vietnam was complicated by theCambodian–Vietnamese War, the Vietnamese refugee crisis, and the unresolved POW and MIA issues, with U.S. PresidentRonald Reagan continuing to enforce the trade embargo and barring normalization as long as Vietnamese troops occupied Cambodia. Any efforts to improve relations remained closely tied to the U.S.' willingness to honor its 1973 aid commitment to Vietnam and Vietnam's failure to account for the whereabouts of American MIAs in Indochina.

Beginning in mid-1978, however, Vietnam dropped its insistence that the MIA and aid questions be resolved as a precondition for normalization, and stopped linking the MIA issue to other unresolved matters between the two countries. Vietnamese leaders contrasted their restraint on the MIA issue with its alleged political exploitation by the United States as a condition for normal relations. As additional signs of goodwill, Hanoi permitted the joint U.S.-Vietnamese excavation of aB-52 crash site in 1985, and returned the remains of a number of American service members between 1985 and 1987. Vietnamese spokesmen also claimed during this period to have a two-year plan to resolve the MIA question, but did not reveal details.

Although Vietnam'sSixth National Party Congress in December 1986 officially paid little attention to restoring diplomatic relations with the U.S., the report of the Congress noted that Vietnam was continuing to hold talks with the U.S. on humanitarian issues, and expressed a readiness to improve relations. Although ambivalent in tone, the message was more positive than the 1982Fifth National Party Congress report, which had attributed the stalemated relationship to American "hostile policy." The improved wording was attributable to the influence of newly appointed Party General SecretaryNguyễn Văn Linh, who was expected to attach high priority to expanding Vietnam's links with the West. Despite signs of improvement, in mid-1987, the Vietnamese government, having determined that cooperation had gained few concessions from the U.S., reverted to its pre-1978 position linking the aid and MIA issues. However, a meeting between Vietnamese leaders and Reagan's special envoy on MIAs, GeneralJohn William Vessey Jr., in August 1987 yielded significant gains for both sides: in exchange for greater Vietnamese cooperation on resolving the MIA issue, the U.S. agreed to officially encourage charitable assistance for Vietnam. Although the agreement fell short of Hanoi's requests for economic aid or war reparations, it marked the first time that the U.S. had offered anything in return for Vietnamese assistance in accounting for the MIAs, and was an important step towardrapprochement.

The influence of U.S. senatorsJohn McCain andJohn Kerry on U.S. presidentBill Clinton was instrumental in the U.S. government's 1994 decision to lift the trade embargo against Vietnam.^[33] Both Kerry and McCain were decorated veterans of the Vietnam War who served on the Senate Select Committee on P.O.W./M.I.A. Affairs.^[34] In this role, they became intimately familiar with the issue of American MIAs, frequently traveling to Vietnam and coordinating with Vietnamese government officials.^[34] Following years of controversy in the U.S. over the fate of MIAs, as well as measurable progress by the Vietnamese government in meeting related American demands, Kerry and McCain began to advocate lifting the embargo, believing the policy would foster binational reconciliation, post-Vietnam War healing in the U.S., and further American economic and security interests. According to then-SenatorTed Kennedy, "John Kerry did it because the issue of the war burned in his soul, and he found a soulmate in John McCain."^[34] On many occasions, McCain and Kerry met personally with Clinton to promote lifting the embargo. In one conversation with Clinton, McCain stated, "It doesn't matter to me anymore, Mr. President, who was for the war and who was against the war. I'm tired of looking back in anger. What's important is that we move forward now."^[34] In arguing their case to Clinton, the senators "offered geopolitical and economic reasons, but also emphasized the matter of national honor, since the Vietnamese had diligently done all that we had asked them to in the matter of M.I.A [soldiers]."^[34]

The efforts of Kerry and McCain in the U.S. Congress and in the public sphere created the political capital and consensus necessary for the Clinton administration to lift the embargo.^[35] Although officials in the Clinton administration were ultimately in consensus to lift the embargo, the administration perceived they did not possess sufficient political credibility.^[34] Clinton had avoided military service in the Vietnam War as a young man, infamously describing the conflict in a letter in 1969 as "a war I opposed and despised with a depth of feeling I had reserved solely for racism in America before Vietnam."^[36] Consequently, Kerry and McCain sought to use their widespread credibility on the matter to create an environment in which Clinton could lift the embargo. In 1993, Kerry and McCain accompanied Clinton to theVietnam Veterans Memorial, despite substantial opposition from veterans' groups.^[34] Moreover, the two men accompanied Clinton in 1993 "as his escorts" to "deliver the commencement address atNortheastern University."^[34] Later, in 1994, Kerry and McCain co-sponsored a bipartisan Senate resolution urging the Clinton administration to lift the embargo. Despite significant opposition from Republican leadership and veterans' groups, "McCain's sponsorship persuaded twenty Republicans to vote for the measure, which passed by a vote of sixty-two to thirty-eight."^[34] While developing the bill, Kerry was in frequent communication with officials within the Clinton administration.^[34] Following the vote, Kerry emphasized the promotion of national healing, stating, "it was time to put the war behind us."^[34] Likewise, McCain described the resolution as "a seminal event in U.S.–Vietnamese relations," adding that "the vote will give the President the... political cover he needs to lift the embargo."^[37]

The U.S. embargo on Vietnam was eventually lifted on February 3, 1994.^[38] Formal normalization of relations was announced and occurred in 1995,^[39][40] when both countries openedliaison offices that were later upgraded to formal embassies later in the year, with the U.S. later opening theConsulate General of the United States, Ho Chi Minh City, and Vietnam opening aconsulate inSan Francisco.^[41] In 1997, the Vietnamese government agreed to formally drop its request that the U.S. honors its 1973 aid commitment and instead to pay off the debts of the South Vietnamese government, then amounting to $140 million, in order to be allowed to trade with the U.S.^[42] Following this, trade volumes boomed between the two countries.^[43] Also in 1997, Clinton appointed former POW and U.S. CongressmanDouglas "Pete" Peterson as the firstU.S. Ambassador to Vietnam.^[44]

President of the United StatesBill Clinton made a historic visit to Vietnam in November 2000. He was the first U.S. leader ever to officially visit Hanoi and the first to visit Vietnam since U.S. troops withdrew from the country in 1975.^[45]

The annual Bilateral Human Rights Dialogue resumed in 2006 after a two-year hiatus. The U.S. and Vietnam signed a Bilateral Trade Agreement in July 2000, which went into force in December 2001.^[46] In 2003, the two countries signed a counter-narcotics Letter of Agreement (amended in 2006), a Civil Aviation Agreement, and a textile agreement. In January 2007, Congress approvedPermanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) for Vietnam.^[47] In July 2015, the United States hostedVietnamese Communist Party general secretaryNguyễn Phú Trọng in the first-ever visit of a Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary to the United States^[48] following a concerted effort by theObama administration to pursue warmer relations with Vietnam.^[49]

On 27–28 February 2019, the2019 North Korea–United States Hanoi Summit was held between North Korean Supreme LeaderKim Jong Un and U.S. PresidentDonald Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam.^[50]

During a visit to Vietnam on 10 September 2023, U.S. PresidentJoe Biden visited with General SecretaryNguyễn Phú Trọng. Following this, the Vietnamese government recognized the relationship between the United States and Vietnam as a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership," emphasizing the increasing importance of bilateral links between the countries. Biden said the aim of the agreement is not to reduce China's influence in Asia, but he is looking for economic growth and stability in Vietnam.^[51][52]

In June 2024, the United States criticized Vietnam's decisionto host Russian PresidentVladimir Putin. U.S. embassy in Hanoi said that "no country should give Putin a platform to promote his war of aggression and otherwise allow him to normalize his atrocities."^[53] A senior U.S. diplomat held talks in Vietnam and said that the trust between the two countries was at an all-time high.^[54]

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Vietnam'ssuppression of political dissent and restrictions onfreedom of speech have been an issue of contention in terms of Vietnam's relations with the United States, and Vietnam's actions against freedom of expression have drawn criticism from the U.S. government.

In spring 2007, Vietnam's government launched a crackdown on political dissidents, mostly anti-communist, and in November of that year, Vietnamese authorities arrested a group of pro-democracy activists, including two Americans. Despite continued suppression of dissent and expression, Vietnam made significant progress on expandingfreedom of religion in 2005, when Vietnam passed comprehensive religious freedom legislation, outlawing forced renunciations and permitting the official recognition of new denominations. As a result, in November 2006, theU.S. Department of State lifted the designation of Vietnam as a "Country of Particular Concern," based on a determination that the country was no longer a serious violator of religious freedoms, as defined by theInternational Religious Freedom Act of 1998. This decision was reaffirmed by the Department of State in November 2007. However, serious concerns continue due to Vietnam's suppression of freedom of speech.^[55][56]

Although the statements of U.S. presidentDonald Trump on socialism and communism attract a lot of political dissidents and human rights activists in Vietnam,^[57] he was criticized for not mentioninghuman rights issues in Vietnam during his visit to Vietnam in 2017 and before the visit of Vietnamese Prime MinisterNguyễn Xuân Phúc to the United States.^[58]

Since the start of theĐổi-mới reforms in Vietnam,foreign direct investment in Vietnam has been possible. Trade and economic relations have expanded significantly since the political rapprochement between the two countries. In 2023, the bilateral trade volume in goods amounted to US$124 billion, of which US$114 billion were Vietnamese exports to the US. This made Vietnam the tenth largest trading partner of America and the US is Vietnam's most important export market. Due to the low production costs, the US, initially imported mainlytextiles from Vietnam, but the imports ofhigh-tech goods is on an upward trend. After the beginning of thetrade conflict between the United States and China, many companies from the US are investing in Vietnam to diversify their supply chains.Apple, for example, is increasingly shifting its manufacturing from China to Vietnam andIndia.^[59] With the growth of the Vietnamese economy, Vietnamese companies are also increasingly active in the US. For example, the Vietnamese car manufacturerVinfast announced the construction of a production facility for electric cars inNorth Carolina in 2022.^[60]

In March 2025, Vietnam agreed to expedite the deportation of Vietnamese nationals from the U.S. following threats oftrade tariffs and visa sanctions from theTrump administration. The country pledged to issue travel documents for 30 detained individuals and respond to U.S. deportation requests within 30 days, marking a shift from its historically slow cooperation. This move came amid concerns that Vietnam, heavily reliant on exports to the US, could face economic repercussions. Most of the 8,600 Vietnamese facing deportation arrived as refugees before1995.^[62]

In addition, Vietnam reduced tariffs on several American products, includingliquefied natural gas (LNG) through energy agreements, as well as automobiles. Additionally, the country moved to approveStarlink services, projecting the satellite internet provider to operate under a five-year pilot program with a subscriber cap of 600,000.^[63][64]

In a phone call with U.S. PresidentDonald Trump on 4 April, theGeneral Secretary of the Communist Party of VietnamTô Lâm offered a "0%" tariff on American goods in exchange for lowering and eliminating tariffs against Vietnam, which Trump praised in aTruth Social post.^[65][66]

In December 2003, the United States and Vietnam signed a Bilateral Air Transport Agreement. Several U.S. carriers already have third-party code sharing agreements withVietnam Airlines. Direct flights betweenHo Chi Minh City andSan Francisco began in December 2004.^[67] Vietnam and the United States also signed a bilateral Maritime Agreement in March 2007 that opened the maritime transport and services industry of Vietnam to U.S. firms. In 2011 the U.S. banks agreed to invest $1.5 billion in Vietnamese infrastructure.

According to theCouncil on Foreign Relations, Vietnam's defense policy is based on the "Four 'No's" principle: no military alliances, no foreign troops stationed on Vietnamese soil, no partnering with a foreign power to combat another, and no force or threatening to use force in international relations.^[68] This was historically "Three 'No's"; however, the fourth, denouncing the use of force, was added in the December 2019 "National Defense White Paper", which also stated that Vietnam is willing to allow ships from other countries to dock at its ports.^[69] Cooperation between the United States and Vietnam in other areas, such as defense,nonproliferation,counterterrorism, andlaw enforcement, is expanding steadily.

Theterritorial disputes in the South China Sea withChina, which has become more assertive in its territorial claims, has also gradually strengthened relations between Vietnam, the U.S., and other Chinese rivals, includingIndia and fellowASEAN member and U.S. ally thePhilippines.^[70][71][72] The U.S. favors an open South China Sea for its largerIndo-Pacific strategy and because Chinese territorial claims in the region threaten the security and prosperity of its key regional allies.^[73] WithVietnam's historically complex relationship with China that included past territorial disputes, Vietnam feels that Chinese claims and actions in theSouth China Sea threaten its sovereignty and territorial integrity.^[69] In this regard, American and Vietnamese security interests align as they oppose Chinese in the South China Sea.

Vietnam hosted visits by five U.S. Navy vessels in 2007, including a port call toDa Nang by the amphibious assault shipUSS Peleliu carrying a multinational contingent of medical and engineering personnel. In June 2007, Vietnamese observers took part for the first time in the multinational naval exerciseCooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT), organized by the U.S. Navy. Vietnamese Prime MinisterNguyễn Tấn Dũng stated that the country is in the final stages of preparation to take part in international peacekeeping, as part of its contribution as a new member of theUnited Nations Security Council.^{[citation needed]}

When asked about thekilling of Osama bin Laden in 2011, Nguyen Phuong Nga, a spokeswoman for theForeign Ministry of Vietnam, agreed with American counterterrorism measures, saying, "Terrorists must bear responsibility for their acts and should be severely punished. Vietnam will continue to join the international community in the fight against terrorism, based on theUN Charter and the basic principles of international law, to eliminate terrorism."^[74]

In April 2013, following increased tensions between Vietnamesefishing vessels and theChina Coast Guard, which peaked a month prior after a Chinese warning flare accidentally set a Vietnamese fishing boat ablaze, theVietnam People's Navy andU.S. Coast Guard cooperated to improve security in Vietnamese waters and resolve confrontations between Vietnamese fishers and Chinese vessels.^[75]

In June 2013, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyễn Tấn Dũng said in a speech at theShangri-La Dialogue inSingapore that he would welcome the U.S. playing a larger role in tempering regional tensions, as China and some of its Southeast Asian neighbors remain deadlocked over competing territorial claims in the South China Sea, saying, "No regional country would oppose the strategic engagement of extra-regional powers if such engagement aims to enhance cooperation for peace, stability and development. We attach special importance to the roles played by a vigorously rising China and by the United States — a Pacific power."^[76][77]

In October 2013, the United States and Vietnam signed a pact allowing for the transfer of nuclear fuel and technology from the U.S. to Vietnam, which is already working withRussia to complete its first nuclear plant by 2014 to meet its rising energy demands, with an American official noting that, "Vietnam is actively taking steps now toward development of a robust domestic infrastructure to support a nuclear energy program."^[78][79][80] In line with its more active engagement with Vietnam, the U.S. has provided funds and equipment for Vietnamese naval capabilities. In 2013, Secretary of StateJohn Kerry announced that the U.S. would provide Vietnam with $18 million to enhance the capacity of its coast guard.^[81]

Additionally, the U.S. and Vietnam also cooperate in the Clean Energy Sector. In 2014, the U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam announced the U.S. was providing technical assistance for developingwind power systems in Vietnam.^[82]

In early October 2014, the U.S. approved a relaxation of its longstanding arms embargo on Vietnam.^[83] In May 2016, PresidentBarack Obama announced the full lifting of the embargo during his visit to Vietnam.^[84]

On 2 October 2016, U.S. Navy destroyerUSS John S. McCain and submarine tenderUSS Frank Cable made the first port visit to Cam Ranh Bay since 1975.^[85] A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier (USS Carl Vinson) visited Vietnam in March 2018. According to the Vietnam Foreign Ministry, the visit would "contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, cooperation and development in the region".^[86]

In May 2017, the U.S. delivered six 45-footDefiant-class patrol boats to theVietnam Coast Guard.^[87] The cooperation in matters of their naval capabilities suggests that the shared security concerns over the South China Sea has strengthened the U.S.-Vietnam military relationship.^[81]

The U.S.-Vietnam defense relationship, however, is limited by historical memory and Vietnam's multivector foreign policy. While fears about regime change have lowered, the U.S.' frequent criticism of Vietnam's human rights situation is understood in the context of the Vietnam War and creates worry in Vietnam about the U.S.' true intentions. This may serve to limit the scope and scale of military cooperation.^[81] Similarly, with its multivector foreign policy, Vietnam avoids aligning too closely with any particular regional power, and in particular limits its engagement with the U.S. to avoid upsetting China.^[81] To that end, Russia, not the U.S., is the largest arms exporter to Vietnam.^[88]

The U.S. Embassy in Vietnam is located in Hanoi. TheU.S. Consulate General is located in Ho Chi Minh City. The Vietnamese Consulate General to the U.S. is located in San Francisco, California. In 2009, the United States received permission to open a consulate in Da Nang; in 2010, Vietnam officially inaugurated a consulate general in Houston.

• Ambassador –Marc Knapper
• Consul General –Marie C. Damour

• U.S.-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/Dioxin
• U.S.-South Vietnam relations
• U.S. Military Assistance Command in Vietnam
• Vietnamese Americans
• Vietnam–European Union relations
• China–Vietnam relations
• Russia–Vietnam relations
• CIA activities in Vietnam

General

•  This article incorporatespublic domain material fromU.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets.United States Department of State.
• This article incorporates text from this source, which is in thepublic domain. Country Studies.Federal Research Division.

Specific

• Demmer, Amanda C.After Saigon's Fall: Refugees and US-Vietnamese Relations, 1975–2000, Cambridge University Press, 2021, focus on restoration of relations.
• Matray, James I. ed.East Asia and the United States: An Encyclopedia of relations since 1784 (2 vol. Greenwood, 2002).excerpt v 2

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