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https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ifts-arms-sales-embargo-to-vietnam/?tid=sm_tw
In historic move, U.S. lifts arms sales embargo to Vietnam
By David Nakamura
May 23
HANOI, Vietnam -- The Obama administration announced Monday that the United States would fully lift a longstanding U.S. embargo on lethal arms sales to Vietnam, a decision that reflects growing concerns about China’s military clout and illustrates the warming bilateral ties between the former enemy nations.
President Obama unveiled the new arrangement at a news conference with Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang during the opening day of his first visit to the country. Obama emphasized that his decision reflected a maturing relationship and deepening cooperation on security and economic investment four decades after the end of the Vietnam War.
Two years ago, the administration had eased portions of the arms embargo that had been in place since 1975 to help bolster Vietnam’s maritime security in the South China Sea, where China’s move to exert more naval control of crucial shipping corridors has angered Vietnam, the Philippines and other nations that have claimed sovereignty.
Obama said the latest step "was not based on China or any other considerations. It was based on our desire to complete what has been a lengthy process of moving towards normalization with Vietnam."
With U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry, a veteran of the Vietnam War, in the front row at the Hanoi Convention Center, the president heralded "a new moment" in the bilateral relationship. The lifting of the ban "will ensure Vietnam has access to the equipment it needs to defend itself and removes a lingering vestige of the Cold War."
Obama acknowledged, however, that the United States and Vietnam share a mutual concern over China's provocations in the region and he reiterated a previous pledge that the United States would "continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows."
The new arrangement would allow the United States to sell military weapons to Vietnam on a case-by-case basis and be predicated on improvements in the country on human rights and freedom of expression, White House officials said.
Ahead of Obama's trip, human rights advocates in the United States had called on the administration to maintain the weapons ban until more progress has been made by the ruling Communist Party..............
In historic move, U.S. lifts arms sales embargo to Vietnam
By David Nakamura
May 23
HANOI, Vietnam -- The Obama administration announced Monday that the United States would fully lift a longstanding U.S. embargo on lethal arms sales to Vietnam, a decision that reflects growing concerns about China’s military clout and illustrates the warming bilateral ties between the former enemy nations.
President Obama unveiled the new arrangement at a news conference with Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang during the opening day of his first visit to the country. Obama emphasized that his decision reflected a maturing relationship and deepening cooperation on security and economic investment four decades after the end of the Vietnam War.
Two years ago, the administration had eased portions of the arms embargo that had been in place since 1975 to help bolster Vietnam’s maritime security in the South China Sea, where China’s move to exert more naval control of crucial shipping corridors has angered Vietnam, the Philippines and other nations that have claimed sovereignty.
Obama said the latest step "was not based on China or any other considerations. It was based on our desire to complete what has been a lengthy process of moving towards normalization with Vietnam."
With U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry, a veteran of the Vietnam War, in the front row at the Hanoi Convention Center, the president heralded "a new moment" in the bilateral relationship. The lifting of the ban "will ensure Vietnam has access to the equipment it needs to defend itself and removes a lingering vestige of the Cold War."
Obama acknowledged, however, that the United States and Vietnam share a mutual concern over China's provocations in the region and he reiterated a previous pledge that the United States would "continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows."
The new arrangement would allow the United States to sell military weapons to Vietnam on a case-by-case basis and be predicated on improvements in the country on human rights and freedom of expression, White House officials said.
Ahead of Obama's trip, human rights advocates in the United States had called on the administration to maintain the weapons ban until more progress has been made by the ruling Communist Party..............
