Hanoi - Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet departed Monday morning for a five-day trip to the United States that is expected to mend the two countries' diplomatic relationship, which was dented by US displeasure at a Vietnamese crackdown on political dissidents this spring. Triet will meet with US President George W Bush at the White House on Friday, where the two will sign a bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement. His first stop will be New York, where a raft of prominent business, political, and education leaders have scheduled events with him, including UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon.
Vietnamese leaders expect the visit, the first to the US by a Vietnamese head of state, to enhance the two countries' relations on both the diplomatic and business fronts.
"This is a very important visit," said Le Dang Doanh, an economist who has served as an advisor to Vietnam's prime minister. "It is a very well-prepared visit, although there were many difficulties arising before the visit, as we all know."
Triet's visit stems from an invitation Bush extended last November, during his trip to Hanoi for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The trip was cast into doubt after Hanoi arrested a series of democracy activists and cyber-dissidents between February and April, sentencing several to long prison terms.
In April, a visit to Vietnam by US Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez led to a physical confrontation between US Ambassador Michael Marine and Vietnamese police, who were obstructing the wives of several dissidents from meeting with Sanchez.
In May, US Congressman Earl Blumenauer, a prominent supporter of Vietnam, resigned from the House Vietnam Caucus in protest at the crackdown, and the House unanimously passed a resolution calling for the release of the arrested dissidents.
With tensions rising, the US delayed confirming a date for Triet's meeting with Bush. On May 30, Bush met in the White House with Vietnamese-American anti-Communist groups which Hanoi considers enemies.
Shortly thereafter, the problems were resolved. The US confirmed the date for Triet's meeting with Bush on June 6, and Vietnamese Vice Foreign Minister Le Van Bang told Blumenauer that Hanoi would release three dissidents before Triet's visit.
Vietnam has since freed Nguyen Vu Binh, an internet dissident imprisoned since 2002, and Le Quoc Quan, a lawyer arrested in March shortly after returning from a five-month fellowship at the US's National Endowment for Democracy. In May, the government allowed Phan Van Ban, a former South Vietnamese police officer jailed for treason since 1985, to emigrate to the US.
The dissident releases have allowed Triet to arrive in the US on a positive note. On Tuesday, he will sign a memorandum of understanding at the New York Stock Exchange on cooperation with Vietnamese securities markets. Later that day, he will meet with US textile importers and attend a reception by international insurance giants the AIG Group.
On Wednesday, the Vietnamese president joins a panel on education sponsored by Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, and hosted by former US senator and Vietnam War veteran Bob Kerrey. He will meet with the UN's Moon later that day. Vietnam hopes to join the UN Security Council as a non-permanent rotating member in 2008.
"I think everybody sees the trip as an indication that the relationship is good, and strong," said Virginia Foote, president of the US-Vietnam Trade Council. "There are several things happening on this trip that are breaking new ground."
Foote listed the TIFA signing and possible progress towards allowing the US's Peace Corps volunteer agency to work in Vietnam. A number of commercial deals are likely to be signed during the trip, including a purchase of Boeing aircraft by Vietnam Airlines.
The US is Vietnam's number one export market, and two-way trade has grown from 1.5 billion dollars in 2001 to 9.8 billion last year. But Vietnam has several economic issues to press with the US.
