US embassy cable - 05HANOI2031

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HANOI 002031 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE FOR EAP/BCLTV AND EB/TPP/BTA/ANA JBELLER 
STATE PASS USTR FOR ELENA BRYAN AND GREG HICKS 
USDOC FOR 4431/MAC/AP/OPB/VLC/HPPHO 
TREASURY FOR OASIA 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PREL, ETRD, PGOV, PHUM, PREF, VM, WTRO, APEC, WTO, RELFREE, HUMANR, ETMIN 
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR DISCUSSES WTO, APEC CONFERENCE, 
BILATERAL ISSUES WITH OFFICE OF THE GOVERNMENT 
 
REF:  A. Hanoi 2020; B. Hanoi 1863; C. Hanoi 1888; D. Hanoi 
1941; E. State 145437; F. Ho Chi Minh City 816; G. Ho Chi 
Minh City 818; H. State 139288; I. Hanoi 1624 
 
1. (SBU) Summary:  The Ambassador met August 8 with a senior 
official in the Prime Minister's office and used the 
occasion to highlight key points relating to Vietnam's WTO 
accession, the proposed joint U.S.-Vietnam APEC conference 
on export controls, human rights and religious freedom and 
the ongoing effort to acquire land to build a new Embassy 
compound.  The Vietnamese official mostly listened, although 
he offered a few general observations on the WTO and human 
rights/religious freedom points.  The Ambassador also raised 
the issue of U.S. treatment of Guantanamo Bay detainees (Ref 
A).  End Summary. 
 
2. (SBU) The Ambassador met Vice Chairman of the Office of 
the Government Nguyen Quoc Huy August 8.  (Note: the Office 
of the Government is the Ministerial-level agency tasked 
with supporting the Prime Minister and Vietnam's three 
Deputy Prime Ministers.  It is roughly equivalent to the 
Executive Office of the President in the United States.  End 
Note.)  Huy, who had accompanied the Prime Minister on his 
June trip to the United States, agreed with the Ambassador 
that the visit was successful and that it had generated much 
follow-up work. 
 
VIETNAM'S ENTRY INTO THE WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
3. (SBU) The Ambassador affirmed that the United States 
strongly supports Vietnam's bid to join the World Trade 
Organization (WTO), but noted that the process is taking 
longer than Vietnam would like.  To keep the process moving, 
the Ambassador has met with Vice Minister of Trade Luong Van 
Tu (Ref B) and Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan (Ref C), and 
the two sides established a mechanism so that their 
negotiating teams can interact informally but intensely. 
The U.S. side is looking for Vietnamese flexibility on 
certain matters, he added, including bilateral market access 
issues, financial services, telecom services, trading and 
distribution rights and tariffs.  Multilaterally, the 
Ambassador said, all parties are actively preparing for the 
Working Party session in September in Geneva.  The key to 
making that meeting a success will be the degree to which 
the Working Party is able to review draft versions of WTO- 
related legislation under consideration in Vietnam's 
National Assembly.  And finally, Vietnam's record in 
implementing the Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) will be 
considered carefully by the U.S. Congress as they debate 
Permanent Normal Trade Relations for Vietnam. 
 
4. (SBU) Huy said the GVN is concerned that "something 
unusual" is occurring in the way the USG is addressing 
Vietnam's WTO bid.  In the Prime Minister's meeting with 
President Bush, the two sides agreed to have a meeting in 
July.  However, when the GVN tried to set it up, they 
discovered it was not possible.  Huy said he appreciates 
very much the efforts the Ambassador has made to move this 
issue forward.  The two sides can accomplish a great deal by 
exchanging information and documents through informal 
channels, he acknowledged, but it is only possible to reach 
agreement in formal negotiation rounds.  The GVN hopes to 
see the next round scheduled soon.  (Note: the GVN's 
concerns on the WTO issue and the perception that the USG is 
reneging on promises made by President Bush are explained in 
detail in Ref D.  End Note.) 
 
5. (SBU) The Ambassador said he participated in the last 
formal round of negotiations and was concerned at that time 
because the two sides were not specific about the timing of 
Vietnam's accession to the WTO or the next negotiation 
round.  The United States had indicated that July was not 
possible, but perhaps not clearly enough.  He agreed with 
Huy that the deal can only be closed during a formal 
negotiation session.  However, if the next round is to be 
the final round, both sides have to be ready to make it 
happen. 
 
APEC EXPORT CONTROL CONFERENCE 
------------------------------ 
6. (SBU) Another issue of importance, the Ambassador said, 
is APEC.  Vietnam will host APEC in 2006, which offers a 
tremendous opportunity for Vietnam.  President Bush is 
looking forward to his visit to Vietnam in conjunction with 
that meeting.  One problem, however, has surfaced:  the 
planned Export Control Conference for APEC Economies and 
Transshipment Centers scheduled to take place in Hanoi 
October 3-6 (Ref E).  The USG welcomed Vietnam's 
announcement of its agreement at the second APEC Senior 
Officials meeting May 31 to co-host the conference and 
understands that the Prime Minister committed personally to 
host this conference on export controls for all APEC members 
with the United States, the Ambassador said. 
 
7. (SBU) The Ambassador advised that the USG has learned 
that one APEC economy may be pressuring Vietnam on issues 
related to this conference in an attempt to reverse 
commitments that all APEC economies made in Bangkok and 
Santiago.   It is inappropriate, he continued, to hold a 
conference on APEC issues that excludes any APEC members, 
including Chinese Taipei and Hong Kong.  APEC members cannot 
compromise the vitality of APEC by allowing one member to 
prevent others from implementing APEC commitments or 
inviting all APEC economies to participate in discussions 
relating to the implementation of these commitments, he 
stressed. 
 
8.  (SBU) The USG and GVN should not backtrack from APEC 
Ministers' commitments, the Ambassador said.  Last year, 
APEC Ministers specifically committed to "continue work in 
APEC to unite economies and the private sector to facilitate 
the flow of goods to legitimate end users while preventing 
illicit trafficking in weapons of mass destruction, their 
delivery systems, and related items."  Backing off because 
of one APEC member's unwarranted pressure would not reflect 
well on the GVN. 
 
9. (SBU) The United States needs to move forward on the 
planning and preparation and is deeply concerned that any 
additional delay will result in a poorly attended conference 
that will not serve the goals of the U.S. and Vietnam 
governments or of APEC, the Ambassador explained.  If the 
Embassy is unable to confirm by Wednesday, August 10, that 
Vietnam is committed to both co-hosting this conference and 
inviting all APEC economies, and is actively working with 
the United States on the conference logistics, the United 
States will be compelled to change the venue.  Export 
controls are an important issue for all APEC economies and 
transshipment centers.  Limiting this conference is simply 
wrong.  The Ambassador expressed the hope that the GVN will 
move forward quickly and support a successful conference for 
all APEC economies. 
 
10. (SBU) Huy said Vietnam is taking APEC very seriously, 
and that the Prime Minister has set up an organizational 
board of senior GVN officials from all agencies with an 
active role in planning or implementing the APEC summit.  He 
took note of the Ambassador's concerns on the APEC Export 
Controls Conference and said he would discuss the USG's 
concerns with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the 
Prime Minister. 
 
NEW EMBASSY COMPOUND 
-------------------- 
 
11. (SBU) The Ambassador raised the issue of the USG's 
efforts to negotiate an agreement on a location and lease 
for a new Embassy compound (NEC).  A USG team had come to 
Vietnam in July to meet with the GVN.  Both sides worked 
hard for a week and reached agreement on the site and on the 
necessary procedures to move forward.  At the last minute, 
however, the GVN side said it had to obtain wider approval 
for the plan and then was unable to do so.  When Hanoi 
People's Committee Vice Chairman Do Hoang An can agree to 
the signed minutes of the July meeting, it will be possible 
for the two sides to work together on a lease.  The USG is 
eager to reach that point, as the GVN should be, because the 
GVN wants to move ahead with plans to address its own space 
needs in Washington.  Huy said he had only just learned that 
the USG had found a new possible site for the NEC and needs 
to learn more about the situation. 
 
HUMAN RIGHTS AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM 
---------------------------------- 
 
12. (SBU) The Ambassador noted that human rights and 
religious freedom are issues where the United States and 
Vietnam have differences that could impede the development 
of bilateral relations.  The Ambassador believes that the 
real human rights and religious freedom story should be the 
positive changes in conditions in recent years, but it is 
not because human nature is to focus on specific incidents 
rather than the whole picture.  Examples of specific cases 
currently inhibiting the world's recognition of Vietnam's 
progress include Than Van Truong (Ref F), a patient who is 
in a mental hospital despite the fact that he is not 
mentally ill.  This case attracts considerable attention in 
the United States.  Another key case is Nguyen Dan Que (Ref 
G), who was amnestied during the 2005 Vietnamese New Year. 
Que intends to apply for a passport and travel to the United 
States to visit his family.  The USG understands the 
sensitivity of the case, the Ambassador said, but hopes the 
GVN will permit him to travel and to return to Vietnam after 
his journey. 
 
13. (SBU) On religious freedom, the Ambassador said he is 
"optimistic and pleased" by developments in the last six 
months as a result of the new legal framework on religion. 
The new framework has given people new opportunities to 
practice their religion.  However, there still are reports, 
particularly from rural areas, that local officials either 
are not aware of, or ignore, the new legal framework.  The 
USG hopes to see a greater effort to help all officials 
understand and publicize the new regulations.  Committees on 
Religious Affairs at all levels need to be responsible for 
communicating with officials and believers.  There remain 
some disappointments, the Ambassador noted.  One example is 
the Mennonite Church in District 2 of Ho Chi Minh City that 
has had problems operating without interference (Ref H). 
This church, founded by the jailed Pastor Nguyen Hong Quang, 
has its services broken up every week.  This creates the 
wrong impression of religious policy in Vietnam. 
 
14. (SBU) On the issue of ethnic minorities in the Central 
Highlands, the recent visit by UNHCR's Bangkok 
representative was a real success (septel).  The Ambassador 
told Huy that he had met with the UNHCR representative and 
that the UN official had lauded the effort and cooperation 
shown by GVN officials during his trip.  The handling of the 
high-profile issue of the returned migrants will be 
important to bilateral relations, the Ambassador said.  In 
this light, the U.S. Embassy and Consulate General in Ho Chi 
Minh City plan to undertake a joint trip to the Highlands to 
visit the returned migrants. 
 
15. (SBU) The family members of ethnic minorities from the 
Central Highlands who went to the United States as refugees 
are also of interest to the USG.  These family members are 
eligible to join their spouses and parents in the United 
States, but they have not been able to go because they 
cannot obtain the passports they are entitled to.  The main 
problem involves Dak Lak Province, the Ambassador explained. 
This kind of local interference with legal processes creates 
bad will and bad publicity. 
 
16. (SBU) Huy thanked the Ambassador for raising the 
sensitive issues of human rights and religious freedom, 
particularly those involving the Central Highlands.  He 
stated that the GVN has "no restrictions on religious 
freedom or human rights."  However, he noted, in Vietnam, 
human rights must be considered along with social stability 
and security.  It is not acceptable in Vietnam for anyone to 
act in the name of human rights or religious freedom to 
challenge or abuse national security.  He drew a parallel 
between "necessary constraints for security purposes" and 
the USG's requirement that visa applicants submit to 
fingerprinting.  "Many people initially rejected the 
fingerprinting as a violation of their rights, but they 
ultimately submitted to it because they understand that it 
is necessary for national security and for their own 
personal safety."  The Vietnamese Government and the 
Vietnamese people recognize that there is a difference 
between legitimate religious acts and those that are 
conducted for the purposes of undermining national security. 
Local officials have the responsibility to enforce the law, 
but the GVN has "no tolerance" for local officials who 
violate laws or policies themselves, Huy said. 
GITMO POINTS DELIVERED 
---------------------- 
 
17. (SBU) The Ambassador delivered Ref H points on the U.S. 
treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay.  Huy thanked the 
Ambassador for the points, and observed that the United 
States had received criticism for its treatment of the 
detainees. 
 
18. (SBU) Closing the meeting, the Ambassador asked Huy 
about any lingering effects from the assault he had suffered 
during the Prime Minister's visit in June (Ref I).  Huy 
rolled up his sleeve to demonstrate a still visibly swollen 
elbow, but said that the injury is healing.  The Ambassador 
assured him that the criminal case against his assailant is 
proceeding. 
 
19. (SBU) Comment:  One of the biggest challenges in 
advocating on issues of importance to the USG in Vietnam is 
generating the necessary high-level pressure on line 
Ministries and agencies to compel them to cooperate and 
implement GVN policy.  Thus, although the meeting with Huy 
did not generate specific agreements or commitments, it was 
useful in bringing our key issues to the attention of the 
Prime Minister and ensuring that the main messages are not 
diluted en route to the Head of Government.  End Comment. 
 
MARINE