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

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[Year 2001]

Vietnam would welcome Clinton visit

HANOI - US President Bill Clinton would be welcome in Vietnam should he decide to visit the country, the foreign ministry here said Thursday. Clinton "has made significant efforts towards normalising relations between the US and Vietnam and he would be welcome should he decide to visit Vietnam," foreign ministry spokesman Le Dung told reporters.

A bilateral trade agreement signed in July between the two countries was an important "contribution by President Clinton to the process of normalisation," he added. The spokesman noted that there were currently no plans for Clinton to visit Vietnam. Clinton met at the UN Millennium summit in New York on Wednesday with his Vietnamese counterpart Tran Duc Luong, and a White House spokesman said they had discussed the possibility of a visit.

"The two discussed the possibility of a visit by the US president to Vietnam but we have nothing to announce on that topic," said White House spokesman Jake Siewert. Clinton will travel to Asia in mid-November to participate in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Brunei.

Agence France Presse - September 8, 2000.