Obama to visit Vietnam next weekend

By VnExpress International May 10, 2016 | 05:28 am PT

U.S. President Barack Obama (2nd R) shakes hands with Vietnam's Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong after they spoke to reporters following their meeting in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington July 7, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

The U.S president will make the first visit to Vietnam on May 22-25, Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

Obama will hold official meetings with Vietnam's leadership to discuss ways for the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership to advance cooperation across a wide range of areas, including economic, people-to-people, security, human rights, and global and regional issues, according to a statement on the White House's website today.

In Hanoi, the president will deliver a speech on U.S.-Vietnam relations. During meetings and events in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the President will discuss the importance of approving the Trans-Pacific Partnership this year. The president also will meet with members of civil society, the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative, entrepreneurs, and the business community.