Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Ha Kim Ngoc affirms Vietnam's desires to promote all-round cooperation with the US.

The agreement was reached during online talks on Thursday between Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Ha Kim Ngoc and Joaquin Castro, member of the US House of Representatives.

The two officials discussed the Vietnam-US Comprehensive Partnership and the ASEAN-US Strategic Partnership, including bilateral cooperation in coping with COVID-19. They expressed their delight at the strong development of the Vietnam-US Comprehensive Partnership in various areas, noting that the two countries have worked closely together in bilateral cooperation and supported each other within the ASEAN-US cooperation mechanism to combat the epidemic and hammer out post-coronavirus economic recovery measures, so as to promote economic, trade, and investment relations.

Ambassador Ngoc informed the US official on the efforts the Government and people of Vietnam have been making in carrying out the dual task of fighting the epidemic and stimulating economic recovery at the same time. He also affirmed ASEAN’s resolve to promote effective cooperation with partners, including the US, and thanked the US for its timely support for ASEAN countries in dealing with the epidemic.

For his part, Joaquin Castro congratulated Vietnam on its initial success in containing the COVID-19 epidemic, and appreciated Vietnam's willingness to support the United States in the coronavirus battle. He voiced his support for a strong, united ASEAN, the US-ASEAN Strategic Partnership and Vietnam’s active role as ASEAN Chair in 2020.

With regard to the recent complicated situation in the East Sea, Congressman Joaquin Castro stated the Congressional Caucus on ASEAN and he personally denounced all actions that infringe upon the sovereignty and run counter to international law and order aimed at changing the status quo and destabilizing the area.

He also expressed support for a joint proposal by the US and countries in the lower Mekong River basin to upgrade the cooperation mechanism, from the current Lower Mekong Initiative (LMI) to the Mekong-US Partnership, for sustainable development in the Mekong region.