AMBASSADOR'S MEETING WITH AFM HUNG: PM VISIT PLANS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 HANOI 000647

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PHUM KIRF CASC MASS OVIP VM HUMANR RELFREE
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR'S MEETING WITH AFM HUNG: PM VISIT PLANS
AND CONCERN ABOUT CIRF RECOMMENDATIONS

REF: A. Hanoi 622; B. Hanoi 570; C. Hanoi 599; D. Hanoi 580;


E. Hanoi 453


1. (U) THIS IS AN ACTION REQUEST: PLEASE SEE PARAGRAPH 4.


2. (SBU) Summary: The MFA is pushing the Embassy for
specific dates for the proposed visit of Prime Minister Phan
Van Khai to the United States. The GVN has some agreements
in mind to use as deliverables, including an International
Military Exchange and Training (IMET) agreement and an
adoption agreement, if the remaining areas of concern can be
worked out. The ship visit scheduled for late March can go
ahead as planned. The GVN urges that the U.S. Commission on
International Religious Freedom (CIRF)'s recommendation to
deny visas to provincial officials in provinces where
religious freedom has been constrained not be accepted. End
Summary.

PRIME MINISTER'S VISIT
--------------


3. (SBU) The Ambassador met Assistant Foreign Minister
Nguyen Duc Hung March 14 at the latter's request. Poloff
also attended. AFM Hung opened with the issue of Prime
Minister Phan Van Khai's proposed visit to the United
States. He said PM Khai planned to also visit Canada, and
that the Canadian Government has offered two possible dates:
June 21-23 and June 27-29. PM Khai would prefer to visit
the United States before traveling to Canada, Hung said.
His preferred dates for the visit are June 20-25, but if
those dates are not feasible, he could accept June 26-July

1.


4. (SBU) Hung asked about the protocol for inviting the
Prime Minister. Specifically, the Prime Minister's office
would like to know if they should expect a personal
invitation for the Prime Minister from President Bush, or
whether there will be some other written confirmation (such
as a diplomatic note from the Embassy) of the trip. ACTION
REQUEST: Please provide us with acceptable dates for the
PM's visit to Washington and advise regarding the method of
inviting him.

DELIVERABLES FOR THE VISIT
--------------


5. (SBU) Hung also reviewed the list of possible
deliverables for the visit, including a maritime agreement;
an MOU on agriculture; a 505 agreement to allow an IMET
program; and, an adoption agreement. The MOU on agriculture
is nearly complete, Hung said, and the GVN expects to work
out the details of the maritime agreement during a USG
delegation's visit beginning March 21. The IMET agreement
might be possible, Hung said, but the GVN has some
"outstanding questions." The Ambassador summarized the
content of the proposed 505 agreement and said theEmbassy's
Defense Attache would be available to brief officials from
the Ministry of National Defense (MND) and the MFA any time
on the details of the agreement. Regarding the adoptions
agreement, Hung said the GVN is "trying to overcome some
legal hurdles" to permit it. "The substance has been
discussed many times," Hung added, "and now we are
optimistic we will overcome the obstacles." The Ministry of
Justice (MOJ) should talk directly to the Embassy about the
adoptions agreement, Hung and the Ambassador agreed. The
Ambassador also noted that an Article 98 agreement and the
framework for bilateral assistance should be on the list of
possible deliverables for the Prime Minister's visit.

SHIP VISIT STILL ON FOR THE END OF MARCH
--------------


6. (SBU) Hung volunteered that MND had proposed postponing
the upcoming U.S. Navy ship visit to May, but that he had
pushed back and MND had agreed to keep the visit on schedule
for late March. The Ambassador told Hung that, in his
conversation with Minister in Charge of the Office of the
Government Doan Manh Giao (ref A),he had learned that the
Prime Minister had been in favor of the visit going forward
as planned. Hung confirmed that the PM had directed that
the U.S. ship receive priority for a visit over a Thai
vessel scheduled to visit at the same time.

RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
--------------


7. (SBU) Turning to the religious freedom issue, Hung said
that GVN had noted with concern reports in the press that
the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom
(CIRF) had issued a recommendation that the USG deny visas
to some Vietnamese officials from provinces where local
authorities have allowed abuses to occur. "If such
proposals are accepted they will make big trouble for us,"
Hung said. "We have lived up to the promises our leaders
made on religious freedom, such as in: the Implementation
Decree for the Ordinance on Religion; an amnesty for several
of the prisoners you were concerned about; and, the release
of an Instruction from the Prime Minister that will lead to
the reopening of churches. We would like a positive
response from your side." The Ambassador reminded Hung that
the CIRF is an advisory body and that, to the Embassy's
knowledge, no plans exist to implement the recommendations.


6. (SBU) Continuing on the religious freedom theme, the
Ambassador noted that Ambassador at Large for International
Religious Freedom John Hanford's visit (refs B and C) had
been positive but a bit disappointing in that he was unable
to leave with an agreement. The visit provided Ambassador
Hanford with a better understanding of the GVN's commitment
to "expand religious space," the Ambassador said. The USG
welcomed "the letter and the spirit" of the religious
freedom regulations and instructions that had been provided
recently (ref D),but is watching carefully to see how they
are implemented, the Ambassador said. In the past week, the
Ambassador noted, there have been reports of local
authorities "not getting the message" or not believing that
the new regulations are genuine. "This phenomenon is not
surprising," the Ambassador said, "and can be expected in
any situation where the rules change. The key will be how
the Central Government reacts to cases in which the local
authorities are not respecting the new rules."


7. (SBU) The Ambassador raised the case of Bui Dinh Thi, who
was admitted to the United States as a refugee in 1994 but
subsequently admitted to human rights violations while in a
reeducation camp in Vietnam from 1978 to 1981. In a
February 25 meeting with the DCM concerning Thi's
deportation back to Vietnam (ref E),Hung said he would take
a look at the U.S. request and identify an appropriate GVN
point of contact to pursue a solution to the problem, the
Ambassador added. Hung responded that the MFA's Consular
Department is working on the issue and said he would provide
a Consular Department point of contact for the Embassy as
soon as possible.


8. (SBU) The Ambassador advised Hung that he will travel to
Texas to give a speech on U.S.-Vietnam relations at Texas
Tech. "The speech will be positive," the Ambassador said,
"but I will raise human rights issues." Among those issues
will be the cases of five prisoners of concern to the USG,
the Ambassador added. Hung thanked the Ambassador for the
advance warning.

MARINE