VZCZCXRO7305
PP RUEHCHI RUEHDT RUEHNH
DE RUEHHM #0360 1001035
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 091035Z APR 08
FM AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3969
INFO RUEHHI/AMEMBASSY HANOI PRIORITY 2607
RUCNASE/ASEAN MEMBER COLLECTIVE
RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH CITY 4191
UNCLAS HO CHI MINH CITY 000360
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
FOR EAP/MLS
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM ECON VM
SUBJECT: FORMER PM KIET URGES USG-GVN TO MAKE UP FOR LOST TIME
Summary
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1. (SBU) Former Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet believes the US and
Vietnam "wasted too many years" before re-establishing relations
after the war, and now both sides must hurry to make up lost
time. Kiet was especially keen on jump-starting stalled BIT
talks. On human rights, Kiet told Ambassador Michalak, the US
and Vietnam share the same goals, but have different timelines
for achieving them. End summary.
Senior Statesman Says "Hurry Up!"
--------------------------------
2. (SBU) Vo Van Kiet, best known for his leadership role in
Vietnam's reform ("doi moi") policy during his tenure as Prime
Minister of Vietnam from 1991 to 1997, received Ambassador
Michalak warmly on March 31 at his Ho Chi Minh City office.
Kiet told the Ambassador that Vietnam's economic success has far
exceeded his expectations, and Vietnam now stands poised to
finally realize the development goals he and his colleagues
envisioned when they began the reform process decades ago. On
the diplomatic front, Kiet said US-Vietnam relations were at an
all-time high, but cautioned against complacency, noting that
both sides "wasted too many years" before normalizing relations
after the war, and now the two countries needed to hurry to make
up for lost time, especially on the economic front.
Balking at the BIT
------------------
3. (SBU) Former PM Kiet asked the Ambassador what more could be
done to move the Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) talks
forward, noting Vietnam had similar agreements with many other
countries already. Ambassador Michalak said the current BIT
impasse presented an "interesting case study," because all the
senior GVN Ministers he has spoken with are eager to get to the
negotiating table and begin ironing out the differences there,
while GVN bureaucrats were taking a much more cautious approach.
Kiet was incredulous, noting in his day, "Bureaucrats listened
to Ministers, not the other way around." Kiet said he would do
everything in his power to encourage senior leaders to start BIT
negotiations as soon as possible, and urged the Ambassador to
continue to do the same. (Note: Though Kiet retired from
official politics after leaving office, he remains an extremely
influential advisor to GVN and CPV leaders alike. End note)
Human Rights: Same Goals, Different Timeline
--------------------------------------------
4. (SBU) Kiet believes Vietnam and the US actually share the
same goals on human rights, religious freedom and democracy,
noting "we want the same things for our people and countries."
Kiet said Vietnam will continue to make efforts to improve its
human rights record and expand the boundaries of free
expression, press and democracy, but the country needs time to
assess the changes brought on by global integration and
requirements for future progress. Kiet said frank and open
discussion is the way for both sides to overcome mutual
misunderstandings. Now that both sides have overcome the
biggest challenge of all, "the legacy of our past," Kiet
stressed "we should not and must not let our remaining
differences delay us from moving forward."
FAIRFAX