HANOI, Vietnam (AP) – The powerful head of Vietnam’s Communist Party will travel to the United States for the first time next week, and said he expects President Barack Obama will visit Vietnam later this year.
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said Friday he hopes to build trust and create more opportunities to improve relations between one-time foes as they mark the 20th anniversary of normalized diplomatic ties. They are also being brought closer together by shared concerns over China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea.
The White House said Trong would arrive on Tuesday, and the leaders would discuss trade, human rights and defense cooperation. It did not confirm a visit by Obama to Vietnam, which would be his first.
Obama is expected to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in the neighboring Philippines in November.
Trong, 71, hosted a small group of Western journalists on Friday, and his staff provided his written answers to questions posed in advance.