~ Le Viêt Nam, aujourd'hui. ~
The Vietnam News

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New U.S. ambassador praises growing ties with Vietnam, calls on Hanoi to improve human rights

The new U.S. ambassador to Vietnam praised the former foes' expanding diplomatic and trade ties but called on Hanoi to improve its human rights record in his first major speech since taking the post. Michael W. Marine told members of the American Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday that he is pleased with the economic and political progress since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1995. Bilateral trade has exploded to nearly US$6 billion since the passage of a trade pact in 2001, and a civil aviation deal inked last December will allow the first direct U.S.-to-Vietnam flights later this year, he noted.

But Marine also expressed concern about Vietnam's restrictions on religious freedom and political dissent. "As I vigorously seek to advance our economic and commercial agenda with Vietnam, I will also continue to seek tangible progress from Vietnam in the areas of human rights and religious freedom, areas that must improve if relations between our two countries are to continue to blossom," Marine said in his speech, posted Wednesday on the U.S. Embassy Web site.

Earlier this month, Vietnam was designated a "country of particular concern" in an annual report by the U.S. State Department. The category is reserved for the world's worst offenders of religious freedom. This was the first time Vietnam was placed on the list, which could carry economic sanctions. "While we recognize that Vietnam has made progress in this area, the plain fact is that a not insignificant number of Vietnam's citizens are not free to worship and practice as they would like," he said. "And, this is something we cannot ignore." Vietnam recognizes only a handful of state-supervised religions and has received heavy criticism from international rights groups, the European Union and the United States for jailing political and religious dissidents.

Marine, 57, a career foreign service officer, is the third U.S. ambassador to serve in Hanoi since the end of the Vietnam War. Before arriving this month, he served as deputy chief of mission in Beijing. Marine previously visited Vietnam in 1988-1990, when he was working on the U.S. quest to recover American servicemen missing from the Vietnam War and other humanitarian issues. Vietnamese cooperation on that issue paved the way for reconciliation with the United States in the mid-1990s.

The Associated Press - September 29, 2004.