Albright To Nudge Vietnam Toward Agreements HANOI - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright arrived in Vietnam Monday with plans to nudge the communist government toward trade, aviation and other agreements with its old enemy. But she does not expect that any of the agreements will be ready for signing during her two-day visit, which follows an intensive five-day tour of the Middle East, a senior U.S. official said en route from Israel. ``We have a bunch of work in progress...She'll use the visit to nudge them to take advantage of the opportunity,'' he told reporters on Albright's plane. The most prominent of five possible agreements would tear down trade barriers and free up financing for U.S. exporters. Negotiators had hoped to have the agreements ready in time for signing during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in New Zealand later this week but the official said he doubted they would meet that target. ``It doesn't look likely. We think they're in the middle of an internal debate on opening their markets,'' he said. ``Some of these agreements are difficult for Vietnam to digest.'' ``They've made important steps in the right direction (in economic reform) but they're not over the hump . She's going to urge them to wake up and smell the coffee,'' he added. The trade agreement would enable the United States to grant Hanoi Normal Trade relations (NTR) status. U.S. officials said last week that negotiators had hammered out the final details and are awaiting Hanoi's approval. The financing deal requires Hanoi to provide sovereign guarantees to the U.S. Export-Import Bank, which in turn would provide export credit insurance, loan guarantees and loans to support exports to Vietnam's public sector. Other agreements cover cooperation in the war against drugs, airline code-sharing between Vietnam Airlines and a U.S. carrier, and cooperation in science and technology. Albright will have meetings Monday with Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, Foreign Minister Nguyen Manh Cam and the secretary general of the Communist Party, Le Kha Phieu. Relations between Vietnam and the United States have been improving since 1995, when they established normal ties. But Washington says it is still concerned at the government's human rights record under the one-party system. ``Secretary Albright will be raising this, as well as issues of religious freedom,'' the U.S. official said. The New York-based group Human Rights Watch said Saturday said Albright should put human rights high on the agenda for her visit to Vietnam. It said she should welcome last year's amnesties of political prisoners but also raise concerns about continuing restrictions on their freedom. ``The new strategy against dissidents appears to be to isolate them instead of imprisoning them,'' it said. Vietnamese Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Dinh Bin told reporters last week that his country had no political prisoners, only prisoners who had broken Vietnamese law. ``An exchange of dialogue on human rights must be based on respect for a country's sovereignty, level of development and other cultural aspects,'' he added. ``In recent decades the Vietnamese people have sacrificed themselves for that most fundamental right, the right to live in freedom,'' he said. On regional affairs, Albright expects to discuss disputes over the Spratly Islands, which are claimed in whole or in part by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia. The United States favors a regional diplomatic forum to stop the rival claims leading to conflict. Tuesday, Albright will witness the repatriation of the remains of four U.S. servicemen killed in the Vietnam War, then fly to Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, to commission the U.S. consulate which opened last month. Reuters - September 6, 1999.

Albright Hopeful Of US-Vietnam Trade Pact Signing HANOI - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said Monday she hoped Washington and Hanoi could formally sign a landmark trade agreement at an upcoming summit of Asia-Pacific leaders. But she said the Vietnamese government needed to smooth over some technical issues before the long-awaited pact, which would normalize trade ties between the former foes, could be signed. Albright, speaking at a news conference in Hanoi following a round of meetings with Vietnamese leaders, said bilateral ties had consolidated since her last visit two years ago, but she added differences remained over human rights and religious and labor practices. ``I feel pretty good that they have a desire to get this done,'' she said, referring to the trade deal, which would open up the giant U.S. market to Vietnamese exporters and commit Hanoi to implementing a range of economic reforms. Albright said it was important that the agreement be signed as soon as possible so it could be submitted to the U.S. Congress for approval. Asia-Pacific leaders are scheduled to meet in New Zealand on September 12 and 13. Analysts have said if Congress has not approved the deal within the next few months, the whole issue could be sidelined by next year's U.S. presidential elections. Reuters - September 6, 1999.

Albright Stresses Reconciliation In Vietnam HO CHI MINH CITY - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright stressed the importance of reconciliation as she wrapped up a visit to former foe Vietnam Tuesday that provided stark reminders of a bloody past. Albright attended a somber ceremony in Hanoi early Tuesday to repatriate the remains of four American military personnel killed during the Vietnam War. She then flew to southern Ho Chi Minh City where she commissioned a new U.S. consulate in the former Saigon, nearly a quarter century after a dramatic airlift from Washington's old embassy here marked the end of the decade-long conflict. ``The United States and Vietnam will forever be linked by history,'' Albright said when commissioning the consulate, which was formally opened last month. ``But by continuing to work together to transcend that tragic legacy we can add to our shared history bright new chapters of hope and mutual prosperity,'' said Albright, who was scheduled to fly to New Zealand later Tuesday for an upcoming summit of Asia Pacific leaders. ``In this place, surrounded by reminders of the past, our two countries will move resolutely toward a better future.'' The consulate stands next to a vacant lot that once housed the former U.S. embassy, remembered most for a final helicopter rescue of embassy staff from its rooftop in April 1975 that signaled the demise of the U.S.-backed South Vietnam. U.S. officials expect the new Ho Chi Minh City consulate, which offers expanded visa services, to become one of Washington's busiest, receiving 1,000 applications per day. The Vietnam War left deep scars on both countries. Some 58,000 U.S. troops died during the conflict, while Vietnam says it lost three million soldiers and civilians. But ties have improved since normalization of diplomatic relations in 1995 -- despite wide differences over human rights -- in large part because of Hanoi's efforts to help account for American servicemen listed as missing in action from the war. Amid steamy morning heat, Albright paid her own tribute to fallen U.S. soldiers at Hanoi's Noi Bai airport. She joined an honor guard that stood stiffly at attention while U.S. military personnel slowly carried four body-length aluminum caskets onto a C-17 transport plane. Albright, who arrived in Vietnam Monday, made clear Washington placed a high priority on accounting for the 2,050 American servicemen and civilians still listed as missing. But she also praised Hanoi for helping account for the MIAs, saying such efforts had facilitated deeper diplomatic, political and economic ties with the United States. ``Our thoughts are with all those families, American and Vietnamese, who for too many years have borne the burden of that tragic war,'' Albright, wearing a dark blue suit and hat, said in a speech on the airport tarmac. The remains of the four U.S. soldiers, found recently in Vietnam's central highlands, will be flown to military laboratories in Hawaii for forensic examination. Highlighting improving economic relations, the two sides in late July reached preliminary agreement on a landmark trade pact, which will clear the way for Washington to grant Hanoi with Normal Trade Relations. Hanoi would try to approve the trade pact in time to sign it at the summit of Asia-Pacific leaders next week, U.S. officials said Monday. Investors have eagerly awaited the deal because it would commit Hanoi to opening its economy. Meeting U.S. investors in Ho Chi Minh City, Albright said: ''The bottom line is I'm cautiously optimistic that we may, I underscore may, get an agreement in the reasonably near future.'' Reuters - September 7, 1999.

Albright Honors Remains Of U.S. Dead In Vietnam HANOI - Secretary of State Madeleine Albright attended a somber ceremony in Hanoi Tuesday to repatriate the remains of four American soldiers killed in action during the Vietnam War. Amid steamy morning heat, U.S. military personnel slowly carried four body-length aluminum caskets past an honor guard comprised of Albright and other American diplomats onto a C-17 transport plane at Hanoi's Noi Bai airport. Albright, on a two-day trip to Vietnam, made clear the United States placed a high priority on accounting for the 2,050 American servicemen and civilians still listed as missing from the Vietnam War, which ended in 1975. But she also praised Washington's former foe for helping account for the MIAs, long an emotional topic in the United States, which was rent by a war in which it backed South Vietnam against the ultimately victorious communist North. ``Our hope is to provide some American families with the limited and long-delayed solace that certainty can provide about the fate of their loved ones,'' Albright, wearing a dark blue suit and hat, said in a speech on the airport tarmac. ``The work of recovering the remains is emotionally brutal as there is no guarantee of success but we persevere in this intensive effort because the United States will never forget our fallen, our missing and the sacrifice of their families.'' ``Our thoughts are with all those families, American and Vietnamese, who for too many years have borne the burden of that tragic war,'' Albright added. Some 58,000 U.S. troops were killed during the decade-long conflict, and Washington and Hanoi only normalized diplomatic relations four years ago. Hanoi says it lost some three million soldiers and civilians during the Vietnam War. The remains of four U.S. soldiers, found recently by American and Vietnamese search teams in Vietnam's central highlands, are believed to date back to the late 1960s. They will be flown to military laboratories in Hawaii for forensic examination. U.S. repatriation ceremonies in Hanoi, while routine, are still poignant for U.S. Ambassador to Hanoi Pete Peterson. The former fighter pilot spent more than six years as a prisoner of war in the infamous ``Hanoi Hilton'' jail after his plane was shot down over Vietnam's northern Red River Delta in 1966 on his 67th mission. Tuesday he stood stiffly at attention as the caskets, each one draped with an American flag and marked ``U.S. Army Mortuary Hawaii,'' were carried onto the waiting plane. Political analysts point to Hanoi's cooperation on the MIA issue as a key reason for strengthening bilateral ties. Indeed, Albright said Vietnam's efforts in helping the MIA accounting process had paved the way for deeper diplomatic, political and economic ties with Washington. Underscoring improving economic relations, the two sides in late July reached preliminary agreement on a landmark trade pact, which will clear the way for Washington to grant Hanoi with Normal Trade Relations. Hanoi would try to approve the trade pact in time to sign it at a summit of Asia-Pacific leaders next week, U.S. officials said Monday. Investors have eagerly awaited the deal because it would commit Hanoi to opening its economy. After the repatriation ceremony Albright flew to southern Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, to commission a new U.S. consulate that opened last month. She was scheduled to fly to New Zealand later Tuesday. Reuters - September 7, 1999.