VZCZCXRO8667
OO RUEHHM
DE RUEHHI #1258/01 3171006
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 121006Z NOV 08
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8716
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH 5283

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 HANOI 001258 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR OES, EAP/MLS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: SENV TBIO SOCI PREL ECON KFLU KHIV VM
 
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR VISIT BY OES ASSISTANT SECRETARY MCMURRAY 
TO VIETNAM 
 
Introduction 
------------ 
 
¶1. (SBU) Mission Vietnam looks forward to welcoming you to Ho Chi 
Minh City, Can Tho and Cat Tien National Park.  Your visit will be 
an important signal to the Vietnamese of the importance of our 
growing bilateral environmental relationship, especially as we seek 
to build on the progress made during Prime Minister Nguyen Tan 
Dung's June visit to the White House.  Your participation in the 
opening of the Delta Research and Global Observation Network 
(DRAGON) Institute at Can Tho University will highlight U.S.-Vietnam 
cooperation on climate change.  Meetings with several Government of 
Vietnam (GVN) ministries and agencies will provide the opportunity 
to build upon ongoing wildlife protection efforts.  You may also 
wish to stress Vietnam's need to balance rapid economic growth with 
environmental considerations.  Your interlocutors may raise the 
issue of Agent Orange/dioxin and will seek increased U.S. assistance 
in this area. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Our bilateral relationship with Vietnam is arguably at its 
highest point since relations were normalized in 1995.  Our 
strengthening relations are in large part due to Vietnam and the US 
seeing the mutual strategic value of expanding their partnership. 
Vietnam is the 13th most populous country in the world and a 
critical geo-strategic partner for the US in Asia, while the US is 
one of Vietnam's largest economic and trading partners, as well as, 
the key balance force in maintaining a stable geopolitical 
environment, assured independence and freedom of action. 
Conservative voices in Vietnam's leadership remain wary of U.S. 
intentions, but their influence is waning as the country's young 
population -- the first generation in memory to live without war -- 
looks to the West.  The United States is Vietnam's largest export 
market and third largest overall trade partner, and U.S. investment 
in Vietnam continues to grow.  Vietnam also sees in the United 
States an increasingly important source of investment and financial 
and technical assistance.  We see this quite explicitly in the 
context of our environmental and science and technology 
interactions, where our Vietnamese partners repeatedly seek broader 
and deeper cooperation.  Strategically, Vietnam increasingly views 
the U.S. presence in the region as a force for stability, a 
perspective evident in the inaugural rounds of Political-Defense and 
Policy Planning talks, held October 6 and 31, respectively.  Vietnam 
is also taking a more active role in multilateral diplomacy, both as 
a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and as an emerging 
leader in ASEAN.  In addition to supporting regional efforts to 
combat infectious disease and mitigate climate change, we are 
encouraging Vietnam to play a more proactive, constructive role at 
the UNSC and to contribute to global peacekeeping operations. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Profound differences remain, however, particularly in our 
approach to human rights.  While Vietnam has made strides in 
improving religious freedom -- resulting in the country being 
removed from the list of "Countries of Particular Concern" -- there 
has not been a corresponding improvement in political rights or 
press freedom.  Suspicion over our human rights reporting and 
advocacy almost certainly are a main reason for the cumbersome 
restrictions that the GVN continues to place on our HCMC consulate 
operations.  Although Vietnamese are overall quite positive about 
the United States, they react defensively to criticism, particularly 
on human rights, and tend to counter with references to "legacies of 
the war," in particular Agent Orange.  We have our differences too 
on how Vietnam approaches international issues.  While taking its 
UNSC obligations seriously, Vietnam's non-interventionist line has 
caused it to align with Russia and China on issues such as Georgia 
and Darfur.  China, understandably, remains Vietnam's strategic 
obsession and provides the subtext for Hanoi's "friends to all" 
foreign policy -- an approach that can at first seem naive, but 
which is firmly rooted in real politic. 
 
Climate Change 
-------------- 
 
¶4. (U) Thanks to your support, during Prime Minister Dung's recent 
visit to Washington, the two nations agreed to set up a new joint 
subcommittee under the existing bilateral Science and Technology 
Agreement to advance specific areas of cooperation on climate change 
adaptation and mitigation.  The two nations have named co-chairs for 
the subcommittee and those co-chairs are finalizing terms of 
reference for the group in anticipation of the first meeting in 
early 2009.  Also during the Prime Minister's visit, the United 
States and Vietnam announced the creation of the Delta Research and 
Global Observation Network (DRAGON) Institute at Can Tho University. 
 Supported by the U.S. Geological Survey, the DRAGON Institute will 
facilitate cooperation among scientists and policy makers to address 
environmental issues, especially climate change, threatening the 
Mekong Delta. You will lead the U.S. delegation attending the 
official opening of the Institute in Can Tho on November 20. 
 
 
HANOI 00001258  002 OF 005 
 
 
¶5. (U) The June 2008 Joint Statement between President Bush and 
Prime Minister Dung prominently mentioned climate change and 
reflected the high level attention the GVN now pays to this issue. 
Prime Minister Dung recently agreed to chair the GVN steering 
committee on climate change and the Prime Minister expects to 
release the Vietnamese National Target Program on climate change 
within the next few weeks.  While the Ministry of Natural Resources 
and Environment (MONRE) will coordinate GVN climate change policy, 
several other ministries, particularly the Ministry of Agriculture 
and Rural Development (MARD), will play important roles in 
developing GVN adaptation and mitigation responses.  Vietnamese 
officials now are well-versed about the environmental, social, 
economic, and security threats posed by rising sea levels, higher 
temperatures, and changing storm patterns. 
 
¶6. (U) U.S. climate change support has expanded rapidly over the 
past few years.  Mission Vietnam works to assure coordination among 
U.S. agencies, with our Vietnamese partners, and with other 
international donors.  Various U.S. agencies, including USAID, the 
U.S. Forest Service, and NOAA participate in projects that directly 
or indirectly support Vietnam's climate change response. Expanded 
cooperation from the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Nuclear 
Regulatory Commission to support the creation of the necessary 
safety and security infrastructure for Vietnam's planned civilian 
nuclear power sector may help mitigate Vietnam's future greenhouse 
gas emissions.  Locally, the United States plays an active role in 
the Donor Coordinating Committee on Climate Change headed by UNDP. 
 
 
Wildlife Protection 
------------------- 
 
¶7. (SBU) Domestic consumption and regional exports of wild animal 
products threaten Vietnam's once-abundant wildlife.  Vietnam serves 
as a source, destination, and transit point for the illegal wildlife 
trade.  According to the Vietnam office of INTERPOL, illegally 
traded wildlife in Vietnam primarily consists of pangolins, various 
species of rare snakes, and monkeys, with an annual value in the 
tens of millions dollars.   Within Vietnam, the lucrative illegal 
wildlife trade attracts a diverse group of participants, ranging 
from farmers and underemployed rural villagers to high-ranking 
government officials and well-connected trading companies. Lack of 
high-level political will hamstrings GVN enforcement of wildlife 
protection laws, but increasingly strong NGO-funded public education 
campaigns, and a bureaucratic framework of protection that's already 
in place, may help turn the tide.  However, since Vietnamese craving 
for wild meat and animal-based traditional medicines seemingly trump 
conservation concerns, changing the behavior of Vietnamese consumers 
is critical. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Vietnam became a member of CITES in 1994 and domestic law 
requires permits to import and export threatened wildlife.  Over the 
past decade the GVN has issued numerous strategies and decrees to 
protect wild fauna and flora and the Vietnamese criminal code 
authorizes stiff penalties, including long jail sentences, for those 
involved in the illegal wildlife trade.  However, as in many 
developing countries, enforcement remains the issue.  The Forest 
Protection Department (FPD) within MARD has primary (but not 
exclusive) responsibility for the protection of Vietnamese flora and 
fauna.  However, FPD must coordinate with many of the other entities 
with wildlife protection responsibilities, including local police 
forces, customs officials, and border guards, and has no enforcement 
powers.  The Environmental Police Department, recently established 
by the powerful Ministry of Public Security, has jumped into 
wildlife protection and earns strong marks from local NGOs. 
Nevertheless, while various entities within the GVN initiated over 
600 criminal investigations over the past eight years, they have 
targeted a small fraction of the trade. 
 
¶9. (U) Through the ASEAN Wildlife Enforcement Network, the United 
States has paired with prominent international wildlife NGOs to 
provide a full range of training programs to Vietnamese wildlife 
protection agencies.  In August, ASEAN WEN sponsored a conference 
for Vietnamese prosecutors, judges, and environmental police to meet 
with their counterparts from the United States, Malaysia, and 
Indonesia to share information about regional wildlife trafficking, 
wildlife crimes in Vietnam, and challenges facing Vietnamese efforts 
to respond to wildlife smuggling.  A local NGO, Education for Nature 
Vietnam (ENV), recently received State Department grant to host a 
seminar bringing together wildlife protection NGOs from throughout 
Asia to strengthen regional cooperation in the battle against 
wildlife trafficking.  Additionally, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife 
Service funds an ENV project focused on stopping the illegal tiger 
trade. 
 
Agent Orange/Dioxin 
------------------- 
 
 
HANOI 00001258  003 OF 005 
 
 
¶10. (SBU) While debate continues over the possible human effects of 
exposure to dioxin, a contaminant in the wartime defoliant Agent 
Orange, recent environmental studies show that dioxin contamination 
is concentrated in approximately 20 "hotspots," mostly areas within 
former U.S. airbases where Agent Orange was stored, loaded and 
transferred.   Areas subjected to heavy aerial spraying do not 
currently have soil concentrations considered hazardous.  The United 
States and Vietnam have not reached agreement on the scope of 
possible health effects, with Vietnam continuing to argue that over 
three million handicapped can trace their disabilities to dioxin 
exposure.  We do not believe that this figure can be supported by 
scientifically-sound data and analysis.  Statements that describe 
every child born with a birth defect anywhere in Vietnam as a 
"victim of agent orange" are common and remain a favorite propaganda 
tool for persons opposed to closer U.S.-Vietnam relations.  However, 
our engagement on this issue has accomplished much, in both 
transforming the tone of the dialogue and capacity building to 
address environmental issues and provide assistance for the 
disabled. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Since 2001, the USG has spent over USD 2 million to 
initiate technical dialogues, scientific conferences on the effects 
of AO/dioxin, and fund a 4-year project to build the capacity of 
Vietnamese scientists to analyze soil samples collected from the 
Danang airport.  The Joint Advisory Committee (JAC) for Agent 
Orange/dioxin, which brings together scientists and researchers from 
both governments to provide science-based advice to policy makers 
for potential environmental and health cooperation, held its third 
annual meeting in September, during which Vietnamese and U.S. 
members set up task forces to implement health and remediation 
recommendations.  An EPA remediation expert, currently serving as an 
Embassy Science Fellow in Hanoi, is working with the remediation 
task force to develop a remediation work plan for Danang.  USAID has 
started to implement a USD 3 million Congressional appropriation for 
"dioxin mitigation and health activities," with the recent 
announcement of USD 1 million in grants to three partner 
organizations to strengthen services for the disabled in Danang.  We 
continue to work with the GVN, UNDP, Ford Foundation and other 
donors to form a multilateral coalition to environmental remediation 
of three priority hotspots in Danang, Hoa Binh and Phu Cat 
airfields. 
 
Biodiversity 
------------ 
 
¶12. (U) The Greater Mekong Sub-region harbors one of the world's 
most diverse ecosystems and supports millions of people who rely 
directly on forest and river habitats.  The Asia Regional 
Biodiversity Conservation Program (ARBCP), supported by USAID, is a 
regional biodiversity conservation landscape program designed to 
conserve natural resources and biodiversity in Vietnam. With its 
implementing partners -- Winrock International and the World 
Conservation Union-IUCN, the United States aims to conserve the 
region's biodiversity through economic development methods that will 
promote livelihood security for the rural poor.  This April, the 
U.S. Forest Service and the Vietnamese Forest Protection Department 
signed a Letter of Intent to increase cooperation in several areas, 
notably biodiversity conservation.  In June, the U.S. Museum of 
Natural History and Vietnam's Institute of Biology and Creature 
began implementing a bio-diversity conservation project in three 
central Vietnamese provinces. The USAID-supported Responsible Asia 
Forest (RAFT) program recently started work in Vietnam to improve 
the quality and extent of sustainable management of forest resources 
and biodiversity. 
 
Balancing Environment and Economic Growth 
----------------------------------------- 
 
¶13. (SBU) Vietnam's rapid economic growth has strained its ability 
to protect the environment.  In particular, the GVN has not been 
able to control growing pollution, particularly from booming Export 
Processing Zones and Industrial Parks.  Recently, local media has 
turned its focus onto this issue, highlighting several cases of 
egregious violations of Vietnamese pollution control laws.  We have 
also seen growing concern about the environment from average 
Vietnamese, particularly the wealthier urbanized population, which 
now concerns itself with quality of life issues as well as economic 
well being.  While the GVN has drafted an array of environmental 
laws, it lacks the ability (and perhaps the will) to enforce these 
provisions and lacks sufficient penalties to deter illegal behavior. 
 Our counterparts in the Environmental Police Department and Vietnam 
Environmental Protection Agency frequently request assistance from 
legislative drafting to technical training to financial assistance. 
To date, U.S. support for these "brown" issues has been modest.  We 
have identified the need to balance economic growth with 
environmental protection as perhaps the most important future ESTH 
issue in Vietnam and strive to document many of the areas in which 
U.S. assistance could make a difference. 
 
HANOI 00001258  004 OF 005 
 
 
 
Science and Technology Cooperation 
---------------------------------- 
 
¶14. (U) In the eight years since the United States and Vietnam 
signed our bilateral Agreement on Scientific and Technical 
Cooperation, such cooperation has steadily increased.  In February, 
you co-chaired the sixth U.S.-Vietnam Joint Commission Meeting, 
during which the two delegations reviewed the broad nature of 
ongoing collaborative efforts.  As you will recall, the Vietnamese 
brought over 40 delegates to Washington, reflecting the importance 
which they attach to U.S.-Vietnamese efforts.  Since the JCM, the 
two governments have moved forward in several areas, including road 
safety and nuclear cooperation.  At the same time, the private 
sector and academic institutions continue to link up in a variety of 
areas.  While Vietnam's scientific research and development 
capacities remain limited, the GVN recently formed the Vietnamese 
National Science Foundation and the local government in Ho Chi Minh 
City provides substantial funding for S&T activities.  We also have 
seen a dramatic increase in Vietnamese college and graduate students 
traveling to study in the United States, many of whom (with GVN 
encouragement) focus on the sciences and engineering. 
 
Health Development, including HIV/AIDS 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶15. (U) Approximately eighty percent of all U.S. official 
development assistance to Vietnam focuses on health issues, and our 
cooperative efforts to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS and combat avian 
influenza (AI) are the hallmarks of our bilateral health 
relationship.  In 2005, Vietnam became one of fifteen focus 
countries under the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.  Led 
by the Ambassador and jointly planned and implemented by USAID, 
HHS/CDC, and DOD, the program focuses on prevention, care and 
treatment for those infected and strengthening of the health system 
in Vietnam. The program continues to successfully build local 
capacity to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and to provide care, 
treatment and support for an increasing proportion of the estimated 
302,000 Vietnamese currently infected with HIV.  As of April 2008, 
89,605 individuals received counseling and testing for HIV/AIDS, 
while 45,736 individuals had been provided with HIV/AIDS palliative 
care. From an initial budget of USD 17.3 million, PEPFAR funding has 
grown to USD 88.5 million for FY 2008 with a cumulative total of 
226.3 million since 2004.  About 25 percent has gone directly to the 
Government of Vietnam (GVN). In FY 09 the USG will again receive 
approximately USD 88 million in PEPFAR funding aimed at preventing 
new infections, providing care to 110,000 persons, including orphans 
and vulnerable children, and supporting anti-Retroviral treatment 
for 22,000 patients. 
 
Avian Influenza (AI) 
-------------------- 
 
¶16. (U) USG AI-related assistance has focused on preventing a 
pandemic, including strengthening emergency preparedness, building 
veterinary laboratory capacity, animal vaccination campaigns, animal 
surveillance and response, and public awareness.  In FY2008, the USG 
became the largest bilateral donor, surpassing investment by the 
Government of Japan, with  contributions totaling USD 12.4 million 
(double the amount from FY2007).  Since 2005, the USG has provided 
USD 34.6 million to counter the threat of avian influenza to 
Vietnam.  U.S. efforts have made a difference in Vietnam's fight to 
contain highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and have 
contributed to Vietnam's overall efforts to improve health systems 
capacity.  With international assistance, the GVN took quick action 
to contain AI, and has been rewarded with a notable drop in the 
number and intensity of animal outbreaks and human infections. 
Vietnam has moved from an emergency response phase (evident from 
late 2003 through the epidemic waves of 2006) into a crisis 
management phase.  However, Vietnam now needs to develop a 
sustainable long-term strategy focusing on improved poultry 
management practices to minimize the risk of a pandemic.  Though 
internal GVN communications difficulties sometimes delay 
notification to the international health community, and bureaucratic 
friction may slow sample sharing, our Vietnamese counterparts remain 
committed to the campaign. 
 
Other Health Issues 
------------------- 
 
¶17. (SBU) Our health diplomacy program extends into many other 
areas, including assistance to combat other infectious diseases 
(including cholera, tuberculosis, malaria and dengue fever), road 
safety, and food safety. U.S. financial support is complemented by 
the provision of in-kind technical assistance as we seek to assist 
Vietnam in the challenging road of health sector reform, given the 
rapid pace of economic change and modernization.  U.S. assistance, 
largely focused on targeted, disease-specific programs, has provided 
 
HANOI 00001258  005 OF 005 
 
 
tangible benefits to the people of Vietnam.  Yet, we need to 
continue these collaborative efforts, while assisting Vietnam to 
create a public health system responsive to the needs of its 
population.  Increasingly, we try to focus on two principal 
challenges to health sector reform: insufficient human resource 
capacity and the insufficient pace and quality in implementing 
policies necessary to ensure the health of Vietnamese citizens. 
 
Economic Successes and Challenges 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶18. (SBU) After a decade of isolation and failed economic policies, 
Vietnam is determined to catch up with the Asian tigers.  Vietnam's 
"doi moi" (renovation) program of economic reform, begun in 1986, 
has set the country on a successful market economy path, with an 
average growth rate of 7.5 percent over the past decade.  A recent 
World Bank study described Vietnam's poverty reduction rate as the 
most significant in such a short period of time of any nation in 
history.  The GVN focuses on exports and foreign direct investment 
in its drive to achieve middle-income status by 2010. 
 
¶19. (U) The United States is currently Vietnam's largest export 
market and third largest overall trade partner.  Total two-way trade 
in goods with the United States in 2007 was USD 12.53 billion, up 29 
percent from 2006.  One of the most positive stories from 2007 was 
the surge in U.S. exports to Vietnam which rose 73 percent from USD 
1.1 billion to USD 1.9 billion.  Driven by the technology industry, 
the United States is Vietnam's seventh largest investor, with USD 
2.6 billion in registered FDI since 1988, and USD 2 billion more in 
"U.S.-related investment." 
 
¶20. (SBU) While the great majority of experts consider Vietnam's 
long-term economic prospects to be bright, short-term macroeconomic 
imbalances are worrying investors.  Vietnam's current turmoil is 
rooted in high inflation (27 percent year-on-year), the large 
current account deficit, and inefficient allocation of resources, 
which is particularly obvious in the disproportionate amount of 
state resources devoted to powerful State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). 
Economic instability threatens many of the tentative steps the GVN 
has taken to address environmental issues or to fund science and 
technology research and development. 
 
What You Can Expect 
-------------------- 
 
¶21. (SBU) You can expect your interlocutors not only to be 
articulate and well informed, but also to actively seek increased 
bilateral cooperation, particularly in the form of U.S. assistance. 
You may also hear some of your hosts (or, more likely, the press) 
raise Agent Orange/dioxin, whether or not the subject fits within 
the bounds of the scheduled discussion.  While lingering suspicions 
still exist among conservatives in leadership about the development 
of closer ties with the United States, such concerns rarely enter 
the calculus of cooperation on environment, science, technology and 
health issues.  We expect press interest in your visit with strong 
turnout at any press events and at the opening of the DRAGON 
Institute in Can Tho. 
 
¶22. (SBU) We look forward to your visit and stand ready to do 
everything we can to make your time in Vietnam as productive as 
possible. 
 
MICHALAK