VZCZCXRO1748
OO RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHFK RUEHHM RUEHKSO RUEHPB
DE RUEHHI #1398/01 1580738
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 070738Z JUN 06
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 2286
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 1300
RUEHZS/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE
RUEHZU/APEC COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HANOI 001398 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL ETRD APEC PHUM AMGT OVIP CVIS CASC
HUMANR, VM 
 
SUBJECT: THE AMBASSADOR AND VFM LE VAN BANG DISCUSS HUMAN 
RIGHTS, APEC/BILAT IDEAS, MFA LEADERSHIP CHANGES, BILATERAL 
ISSUES 
 
HANOI 00001398  001.2 OF 004 
 
 
¶1. (U) THIS IS AN ACTION REQUEST: PLEASE SEE PARAGRAPH 5. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Summary:  Vice Foreign Minister Le Van Bang made a 
push for a meeting with Secretary Rice for Deputy Prime 
Minister Vu Khoan in Washington on June 19, reviewed 
noncommittally our proposals for possible substance for the 
President's visit to Vietnam (such as Peace Corps, PSI and 
Article 98), and talked about human rights issues.  There 
will be three significant GVN delegations to Washington in 
the coming weeks.  VFM Bang said he is working hard with the 
Ministry of Public Security to win positive changes on 
religious freedom, and said the MFA is working on prisoner 
releases.  On the subject of the Democratic Party of Vietnam 
(DPV), he was stony and uncommunicative, saying only that 
this is a "very serious" issue and that the USG should stay 
out of it.  Both sides are looking for progress on their 
property acquisition issues, with the GVN hoping to get some 
written guarantees from the USG.  Foreign Minister Nguyen 
Dzy Nien will retire in a month, and Vice Foreign Minister 
Le Cong Phung is angling for the Washington Ambassador 
position.   End Summary. 
 
VU KHOAN'S VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES 
--------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) The Ambassador met June 7 with Vice Foreign 
Minister Le Van Bang and Deputy Director of the Americas 
Department Pham Van Que, at a local hotel at VFM Bang's 
invitation.  VFM Bang advised the Ambassador that planning 
for Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan's June 19-21 visit to 
Washington is underway, and asked the Ambassador to push 
hard to convince Washington principals (especially Secretary 
Rice) to see Vu Khoan.  (Note: we have learned from EAP/MLS 
that none of the principals DPM Vu Khoan asked to see will 
be available to meet him.  We have communicated this to the 
MFA.  End Note.)  This important visit will be Vu Khoan's 
last official trip to the United States, VFM Bang said, and 
it is proper for the man who has overseen the U.S.-Vietnam 
relationship for so long to have a chance to exchange ideas 
on bilateral relations as well as the regional and 
international situation at a senior level one more time. 
VFM Bang added that Vice Foreign Minister Le Cong Phung and 
Assistant Foreign Minister Nguyen Duc Hung will accompany Vu 
Khoan.  Phung, VFM Bang noted, is hoping to replace 
Ambassador Chien in Washington, possibly at the end of the 
year. 
 
APEC/POTUS VISIT 
---------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) VFM Bang said that collecting and sharing 
information on the President's visit to Vietnam will be an 
important part of DPM Vu Khoan's trip.  The MFA understands 
that President Bush is considering a second stop in Vietnam, 
such as Danang, Ho Chi Minh City or Hue.  This is a good 
idea, VFM Bang said, but he strongly suggested that 
President Bush pay his call outside of Hanoi after APEC. 
Ideally, VFM Bang said, the President would have his 
official meetings and the bilateral visit just before APEC, 
attend the APEC leaders summit, and then visit one of the 
other cities in Vietnam on the way out.  VFM Bang added that 
bilateral visits with China, Russia and Japan are all in the 
works during the APEC period.  (Note: The new Chinese 
Ambassador to Vietnam, Hu Qianwen, told the Ambassador 
President Hu Jintao will attend APEC, but without a 
bilateral component to the visit.  End Note.) 
 
¶5. (SBU) VFM Bang said the MFA wants to know what the U.S. 
preferences and priorities for the APEC discussions are. 
Vietnam wants to work with the United States to make sure 
the discussions address the right subjects, he added.  In 
addition, the MFA would like to work on a possible joint 
statement and a plan for concrete results from the visit. 
The late summer and early fall will be busy, with many 
officials on vacation.  To avoid a potentially difficult 
last-minute rush, we should work on these key elements of 
the visit now, he said.  The Ambassador said he will consult 
with the APEC office in the State Department to determine 
top U.S. priorities and see how we can cooperate with 
Vietnam to advance those.  He agreed that the U.S. Embassy 
and the MFA should be working together on the practical 
aspects of the President's visit as soon as possible. 
ACTION REQUEST FOR EAP/EP: Please provide a response for us 
to use with VFM Bang regarding their offer to work with us 
to advance our top three APEC priorities. 
 
 
HANOI 00001398  002.2 OF 004 
 
 
PEACE CORPS 
----------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) The Ambassador suggested that announcement of a 
Peace Corps program in Vietnam would be an excellent 
deliverable for the President's visit, and noted that the 
Peace Corps' Advance and Assessment Teams are coming to 
Vietnam this summer to develop the concept further.  The USG 
wants to ensure that the Peace Corps contributes in a 
meaningful way to Vietnam's development, the Ambassador 
said, and therefore wants Peace Corps Volunteers to operate 
outside the main cities.  The team should have access to 
provincial capitals in all three regions, he said.  English 
language teaching should be the primary focus for early 
Peace Corps volunteers, but later it might be possible to 
expand into health and environment assistance or other 
fields.  VFM Bang cautioned that the Peace Corps is still 
quite controversial in Vietnam, and it might be necessary to 
change the name to "American Volunteers" or something 
similar.  It might also be necessary to start in the big 
cities, he said, and expand outward to the provinces step by 
step.  At first, he said, the Vietnam Union of Friendship 
Organizations (VUFO) led by National Assembly member (and 
former Ambassador) Vu Xuan Hong will be the counterpart for 
the visiting Peace Corps officials, but later it will be the 
Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) and possibly the 
Ministry of Health.  (Comment: Post will continue to work on 
steering the GVN away from any attempt to limit the PCV 
placement to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.  We will follow up 
with Ambassador Vu Xuan Hong.  End Comment.) 
 
PSI 
--- 
 
¶7. (SBU) The Ambassador recommended that the United States 
and Vietnam pursue some formalization of the GVN's current 
"case by case" position on PSI.  Nonproliferation, as a 
joint concern of both the United States and Vietnam, is an 
ideal area to pursue greater cooperation.  VFM Bang said 
this needs to be considered at the working level, but the 
GVN supports the idea in principle.  Vietnam can participate 
in PSI actions on a case-by-case basis assuming there is 
proof of a dangerous shipment or cargo.  The Ambassador 
suggested that an interim step might be to participate as an 
observer in a PSI-related exercise, perhaps hosted by 
Australia.  VFM Bang noted that politically, in Vietnam 
there is the perspective that PSI is an imposition on 
Vietnam of the United States' strategy and policy. 
 
Article 98 
---------- 
 
¶8. (SBU) The Ambassador said he is aware of Vietnamese 
sensitivities surrounding an Article 98 agreement, 
specifically Vietnamese concerns that EU displeasure over 
signing an Article 98 agreement with the United States could 
result in some action taken to block Vietnam from the WTO. 
However, an Article 98 agreement is consistent with U.S. and 
Vietnamese policy and interests, and is very important to 
the United States.  We would like to discuss the possibility 
of developing a possible Article 98 agreement, the 
Ambassador said, under the assumption that EU leverage over 
Vietnam will decrease in the future.  The EU is putting a 
lot of pressure on Vietnam over this issue, VFM Bang 
confirmed. 
 
MFA LEADERSHIP CHANGES 
---------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Foreign Minister Nguyen Dzy Nien will retire in one 
month, VFM Bang said.  Other changes will also occur.  "Some 
of the Vice Ministers want to stay, and some want to go.  I 
think I might want to go."  He repeated that VFM Le Cong 
Phung is angling for the Washington ambassadorship, and 
mused that he himself might be headed overseas again.  "Of 
course I would have to find a place more important than the 
United States," he said, chuckling.  Assistant Foreign 
Minister for the Americas, Nguyen Duc Hung, has been named 
Ambassador to Canada but is not certain when he will go to 
Ottawa, VFM Bang said.  "He has to get the current 
Ambassador out of there first." 
 
PNTR AND DELEGATIONS TO THE UNITED STATES 
-------------------------- 
 
¶10. (SBU) As part of the GVN's effort to help secure passage 
 
HANOI 00001398  003.2 OF 004 
 
 
of PNTR, VFM Bang said the "three diplomat Vu's" are leading 
delegations to the United States in the next few weeks: DPM 
Vu Khoan; VUFO President and National Assembly delegate Vu 
Xuan Hong; and Chairman of the National Assembly's Foreign 
Affairs Committee Vu Mao.  VFM Bang said his recent trip to 
Washington had been a success, and said his 16 meetings on 
Capitol Hill had been positive.  He acknowledged that 
Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) might not have been completely 
convinced, and said the Vietnamese Embassy in Washington had 
been tasked with providing follow-up details to all 
interested Congressional offices.  VFM Bang was optimistic 
about the GVN's chances of securing PNTR.  "We have overcome 
many difficult votes," he said, "and our margin gets better 
and better.  This one is permanent, and may be harder, but 
we will probably be fine."  He said the GVN has not yet 
counted votes, but feels that the visit of Secretary 
Rumsfeld, the President's upcoming visit and other events 
"expand the overall picture."  Timing is on Vietnam's side, 
he said: he had heard from both U.S. and Chinese officials 
that Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to the United 
States was a failure, which further improves the PNTR 
environment for Vietnam. 
 
¶11. (SBU) The Ambassador cautioned that trade votes in 
Congress are always difficult, but that the U.S.-Vietnam 
bilateral agreement has a good commercial basis.  However, 
there are those who do not want to see Vietnam get PNTR or 
for the U.S.-Vietnam relationship to advance.  Those people 
will be pushing human rights issues particularly intensely 
in coming months, the Ambassador predicted.  Timing is in 
fact tight; there is not much time left to secure votes. 
The Vietnam vote will need everyone's help and support, he 
stressed. 
 
¶12. (SBU) "We need a simple majority, 51 percent," VFM Bang 
replied.  The GVN is doing its utmost on the human rights 
and religious freedom issues, he said.  VFM Bang and Vice 
Minister of Public Security Nguyen Van Huong have consulted 
regularly on the issue of religious freedom, along with 
Chairman Ngo Yen Thi of the Commission on Religious Affairs. 
"We have agreed to concentrate on the Northwest Highlands to 
get them to adhere to the law and to improve the situation 
there the way we did in the Central Highlands," he said. 
There are problems, including differences of opinion so 
sharp they divide families.  "In some places, they say they 
have no religious believers.  But in the same places, there 
are people who say they are religious believers."  The 
Ambassador and VFM Bang agreed that the likelihood of 
Vietnam's removal from the CPC list before the PNTR vote is 
nonexistent.  VFM Bang complained that Vietnam's continued 
presence on the CPC list is difficult for him personally, 
because he suffered criticism for signing the letter on 
religious freedom and then the USG did not remove Vietnam 
from the CPC list.  He said he hopes the USG has a clear 
understanding that improvements in the Northwest Highlands 
will have to come step by step, and will not occur 
immediately. 
 
¶13. (SBU) The Ambassador stressed that for the USG to 
recommend the lifting of CPC, there will have to be "visible 
progress, such as church openings and registrations, people 
openly practicing their religion and discipline of local 
officials who violate the ordinance on religion."  In 
addition, we continue to wait for the province-by-province 
breakdown of religious improvements promised by the 
Committee on Religious Affairs in earlier meetings.  VFM 
Bang promised to follow that up. 
 
GENERAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE DPV 
---------------------- 
 
¶14. (SBU) Even more important for PNTR than religious 
freedom will be general human rights, the Ambassador said. 
Several high-profile political prisoners, including Pham 
Hong Son and Nguyen Vu Binh, continue to sit in jail. 
Releasing them will be a strong indicator that things are 
improving in Vietnam, the Ambassador said; if the GVN has 
any intention of doing so, the sooner the better.  VFM Bang 
said the GVN is working on the issue of the high-profile 
prisoners, and hopes to have an answer before the PNTR vote. 
 
¶15. (SBU) The USG notes with interest the developments 
related to the recent re-establishment of the Democratic 
Party of Vietnam (DPV) by certain political dissidents, the 
Ambassador said.  The U.S. Embassy hopes that the lack of a 
crackdown on these individuals represents a GVN decision to 
 
HANOI 00001398  004.2 OF 004 
 
 
expand the political space available to individuals in 
Vietnam, which would be a positive development.  After a 
chilly pause in the conversation, VFM Bang said the DPV 
represents an extremely serious issue on which all sides 
should be very careful.  Recent actions, including the 
internet release of the transcript of a meeting between the 
DPV and western diplomats is "too much" and could represent 
a "break point" in the bilateral relationship.  "Sometimes 
we can bring issues up for discussion with each other," VFM 
Bang elaborated.  "And sometimes, the issue is so serious I 
can only talk about how serious it is.  This is one of those 
times."  He said he had told the Australian ambassador that 
Australian Embassy meetings with the DPV are bad.  "The more 
you get involved in that, the more you will drive Vietnam 
away from you," VFM Bang said.  The Ambassador noted that 
the GVN was also guilty of releasing confidential meeting 
information on the internet, and that the USG objected to 
being used by either side for political purposes.  "We 
support freedom of speech and peaceful political 
organization.  We are interested in the activities of this 
group, but not involved."  They are a small group and no 
threat to the regime, the Ambassador concluded. 
 
¶16. (SBU) The Ambassador informed VFM Bang that U.S. Embassy 
personnel will be making more trips to the Northwest 
Highlands and northern border provinces in coming months as 
we try to verify the religious freedom situation for 
ourselves.  VFM Bang said he has been receiving complaints 
from the People's Committee chairmen in the northern 
provinces asking him to slow the pace of foreign visits. 
"The visits have become too frequent," VFM Bang said, "and 
the provinces are suffering from overload."  The Ambassador 
said that these trips are a necessary part of diplomacy and 
asked VFM Bang to assist in convincing the provincial 
authorities to facilitate the trips. 
 
PROPERTY ISSUES 
----------- 
 
¶17. (SBU) VFM Bang said that he has talked to officials from 
throughout the State Department in his effort to resolve 
remaining property issues.  He said Vietnam will not link 
the outcome of their property search in Washington to the 
outcome of the U.S. negotiations in Hanoi, or any other 
issue.  Vietnam simply wants a legal assurance that they can 
search for and acquire a property for their Embassy in 
Washington.  "We need clear, written legal permission," VFM 
Bang said.  He said that in the future, the GVN might want 
to open a consulate in Houston or Chicago.  The Ambassador 
said that EAP and OFM are working on a property acquisition 
roadmap to help clarify the GVN's concerns, and said this 
would be ready in 1-2 weeks.  VFM Bang said the GVN has 
already lost properties that would have been perfect.  One 
property on Massachusetts Avenue had been available for USD 
9 million, but subsequently was sold to another Embassy and 
is now on the market again for USD 20 million.  "That is 
expensive for us, we cannot lose that much money," VFM Bang 
said.  The Ambassador commiserated, noting that the Hanoi 
People's Committee has kept the United States Government 
waiting for a property for ten years. 
 
¶18. (SBU) VFM Bang also said that the GVN would like to 
figure out how to regularize the status of consular officers 
working in its office in New York.  "We need a note in 
writing from the U.S. State Department agreeing that we can 
use one officer solely for consular work," VFM Bang said. 
The Ambassador noted that this is exactly what the USG has 
been asking the GVN for over the last eight years - a note 
spelling out the formal rights of U.S. diplomats in Ho Chi 
Minh City.  "Both sides should have such assurances," the 
Ambassador said. 
 
¶19. (SBU) Comment: VFM Bang was his usual, pragmatic self, 
offering possible solutions or promises of information for 
virtually all of the issues raised.  His behavior when we 
talked about the DPV, however, was cold.  He answered 
questions very slowly and carefully and did not stray from a 
formal, guarded script.  Where other issues might warrant a 
promise to "work on that," the DPV question prompted only a 
warning to stay away from a very serious issue.  That cannot 
be a good sign.  End Comment. 
 
 
MARINE