U.S. aircraft carrier to visit Vietnam in post-war first
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[url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-vietnam-mattis-carrier/u-s-aircraft-carrier-to-visit-vietnam-in-post-war-first-idUSKBN1FE0XI]Source[/url]
[quote]The announcement came during a two-day visit to Hanoi by U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis that had been expected to focus on shared concerns about China.
The proposed visit is set for March at the central port of Danang, Vietnam’s defence ministry said in a statement. Such a visit by a U.S. aircraft carrier could bring the most U.S. forces to Vietnam since the conflict ended in 1975.
Mattis cheered the planned port visit during talks with Nguyen Phu Trong, the general secretary of the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam.
“Thank you for the increasing partnership, with our aircraft carrier coming into Danang here in March,” Mattis said.
Captain Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, confirmed the carrier visit was discussed by Mattis and Defence Minister Ngo Xuan Lich, and Vietnam’s defence ministry was seeking final approvals from national leaders.
“We expect it will be approved,” Davis said.
The arrival of a U.S. aircraft carrier in Vietnam will be welcomed by an emerging network of countries that are nervously eyeing China’s military rise, particularly its assertive stance and island-building activities in the South China Sea.
The busy waterway is a vital global trade route linking Northeast Asia with the Middle East and Europe.
In particular, the militaries of U.S., Japan, India and Australia are working more closely together as a “quad” of liberal democracies across what they now term the “Indo-Pacific” – moves driven by mistrust of China.
U.S. Pacific Commander Admiral Harry Harris last week described China as a “disruptive transitional force in the Indo-Pacific” after meetings with Japanese and Indian military leaders in New Delhi.
India, Japan and Australia have all boosted military relations with Vietnam in recent years, with New Delhi providing advanced training for its emerging submarine forces and jet fighter pilots. [/quote]
[t]https://i.imgur.com/tEHYS14.png[/t]
[quote]U.S. Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis (R) and Vietnam's Defence Minister Ngo Xuan Lich review the guard of honour during a welcoming ceremony in Hanoi[/quote]
Mattis enlisted during Vietnam, though he never went over. It's good to see this happen in the lifetime of Vietnam veterans.
I'd like to point out that the Navy has made plenty of port visits to Vietnam before, it's just that this will be the first carrier port visit ever vice a destroyer or cruiser.
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