US lawmaker pledges to protect Vietnamese-Americans

During online talks with Vietnamese ambassador to the U.S., Ha Kim Ngoc, on Wednesday, a Texan member of the House of Representatives and founding co-chair of the ASEAN Caucus in Congress, agreed to his suggestion he should work with his government to protect Vietnamese-Americans and also safeguard their right to healthcare, education and social welfare.

Over 2.1 million ethnic Vietnamese live in the U.S., mainly in California.

Ngoc thanked the U.S. for supporting Vietnam and ASEAN in their response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

He wanted it to help Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, access Covid-19 vaccines and provide Vietnam with technology and licensing for vaccine production.

Castro assured him he will work closely with the U.S. government on the proposals.

Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long has said Vietnam is seeking to acquire Covid-19 vaccines. It wants to secure 150 million doses to cover 70 percent of its population by next year.