VZCZCXRO1372
OO RUEHCHI RUEHCN RUEHDT RUEHHM
DE RUEHHI #1040/01 2560849
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 120849Z SEP 08
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8429
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH IMMEDIATE 5094
RUEHZS/ASEAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 001040 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/MLS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OVIP NEGROPONTE JOHN PREL PGOV PHUM ETRD VM
 
SUBJECT: (U) Deputy Secretary Negroponte's September 11, 2008 
conversation with Vietnam DPM/FM Pham Gia Khiem 
 
HANOI 00001040  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. FOR INTERNAL USG USE.  NOT SUITABLE FOR 
INTERNET POSTING. 
 
¶1.  (U) September 11, 2008; 0915; Hanoi, Vietnam. 
 
¶2.  (U) Participants: 
 
U.S. 
The Deputy Secretary 
Ambassador Michael Michalak 
DAS Scot Marciel 
PolCouns Brian Aggeler 
D Special Assistant Kaye Lee 
D Special Assistant Ted Wittenstein 
DPolCouns Mike Goldman (Notetaker) 
 
VIETNAM 
DPM/FM Pham Gia Khiem 
VFM Pham Binh Minh 
DG Americas Department Nguyen Ba Hung 
Assistant Director Americas Department Le Chi Dung 
MFA Desk Officer Tran Tan 
 
¶3.  (SBU) SUMMARY.  Meeting September 11, the Deputy Secretary and 
Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem 
affirmed that, overall, U.S.-Vietnam relations continue to improve. 
Despite differences on human rights and Vietnam's stance at the UNSC 
on issues such as Georgia, the two sides have made substantial 
progress, particularly in areas such as education, health, and 
trade.  The Deputy Secretary urged Vietnam to come to an agreement 
on HCMC's consular district and emphasized that to do their jobs 
properly, Embassy and Consulate officers must be able to meet with 
persons from all strata of society, including those who might 
disagree with the government.  Ambassador Michalak encouraged the 
GVN to establish a transparent mechanism to settle the ongoing 
property dispute at Hanoi's Thai Ha parish.  DPM/FM Khiem pressed 
for movement on Vietnam's GSP and Market Economy status.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
----------------------------- 
BILATERAL RELATIONS IMPROVING 
----------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Noting Vietnam's tremendous economic progress, the Deputy 
Secretary remarked the country today would have been unrecognizable 
when he first arrived in Saigon as a Second Secretary in 1964.  The 
Deputy Secretary and DPM/FM Khiem agreed that the bilateral 
relationship has likewise improved, especially in areas such as 
health, education, trade, and the recovery of MIA remains.  The two 
sides should work to deepen their exchanges on political and 
security matters, the Deputy Secretary and DPM/FM Khiem affirmed, 
pointing to annual port calls and the October visit of A/S Kimmitt 
to inaugurate talks on political-military affairs.  Khiem stated 
that he looks forward to his meeting with Secretary Rice on the 
margins of UNGA and hopes that the U.S. and Vietnam can use the 
occasion to produce a "joint assessment" of the progress in 
bilateral relations during the eight years of the Bush 
administration. 
 
----------------------------------------- 
"FRIENDS TO ALL," BUT WHAT ABOUT GEORGIA? 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) The Deputy Secretary urged Vietnam to work more closely 
with the United States at the UN Security Council, especially on 
issues such as Georgia.  Big countries should not treat their 
smaller neighbors the way Russia has treated Georgia, the Deputy 
Secretary emphasized.  DPM/FM Khiem issued a standard recitation of 
Vietnam's "friends to all" foreign policy, conceding only that Hanoi 
remains concerned with the situation in Georgia. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
HCMC CONSULAR OPERATIONS AND THE NEW EMBASSY COMPOUND 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Urged by the Deputy Secretary to make progress on 
negotiations over the NEC property, DPM/FM Khiem affirmed that the 
United States should have a "marvelous" embassy commensurate with 
the two countries' increasingly robust diplomatic relations.  He 
offered to meet personally with U/S Kennedy in Hanoi to discuss the 
NEC.  For his part, Khiem requested that the State Department 
facilitate the purchase of residential property in New York by 
Vietnam's UN mission. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The Deputy Secretary pressed Khiem to recognize HCMC's 
consular district and to lift restrictions on consular operations 
outside of Ho Chi Minh City.  He stressed that it was absurd to 
 
HANOI 00001040  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
expect Embassy officers from Hanoi to cover territory, such as the 
Mekong Delta, that should naturally be the responsibility of the 
HCMC consulate.  Khiem suggested that the issue could be resolved 
"step by step," but declined to go into specifics, noting that the 
issue would be discussed in more detail during the Deputy 
Secretary's afternoon meeting with the Prime Minister.  Khiem 
expressed optimism that Vietnam would soon be able to open a 
consulate in Houston and the United States would have a consulate in 
Danang. 
 
----------------------------------- 
HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE THAI HA PARISH 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) The Deputy Secretary noted the importance of human rights 
and religious freedom, mentioning that the recent human rights 
dialogue with Vietnam had been very valuable.  He emphasized that 
Embassy and Consulate officers, like their diplomatic colleagues at 
missions around the world, are committed to maintaining contact with 
individuals and groups representing a wide spectrum of opinion. 
These meetings are part of their normal work as diplomats and should 
not be taken as evidence of hostile intent.  To the contrary, the 
United States is committed to looking for ways to strengthen ties 
with Vietnam. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) DPM/FM Khiem insisted that ongoing protests over land 
ownership at Thai Ha parish, as well as the government's response, 
was not a religious issue, but rather a question of individuals 
violating the law.  He sought to assure the Deputy Secretary that 
Vietnam remains committed to helping religious organizations 
function and would assist groups find land for "genuine and 
legitimate purposes."  He said that Vietnam's land laws are 
complicated, as is the history of land ownership, and decried the 
fact that Thai Ha parishioners had taken action outside of 
Vietnamese law.  The Ambassador commented that this was not the 
first time that the GVN had found itself involved in a land dispute 
involving former church property (and it almost certainly wouldn't 
be the last) and encouraged the government to establish a clear, 
transparent mechanism for both sides to express their positions and 
reach a reasonable solution. 
 
----------------------------- 
GSP AND MARKET ECONOMY STATUS 
----------------------------- 
 
¶10.  (SBU) Citing Prime Minister Dung's June visit to Washington, 
DPM/FM Khiem urged the United States to move forward in designating 
Vietnam as a beneficiary under the Generalized System of Preferences 
and in recognizing Vietnam's status as a market economy.  The Deputy 
Secretary and Ambassador responded that GSP was under serious 
consideration, but that there remained work to be done on labor and 
intellectual property rights, as outlined by the USTR.  As for 
Vietnam's potential status as a market economy, the U.S. side noted 
that Secretary Gutierrez had recently sent a letter discussing the 
establishment of a market economy working group.