Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09HANOI456
2009-05-15 10:01:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Hanoi
Cable title:  

VIETNAM-CUBA: TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT

Tags:  ETRD ETTC ECON PREL PGOV CU VM 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO5240
OO RUEHHM
DE RUEHHI #0456 1351001
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 151001Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY HANOI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9639
INFO RUEHHM/AMCONSUL HO CHI MINH PRIORITY 5851
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK PRIORITY 0303
C O N F I D E N T I A L HANOI 000456 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

FOR WHA/CCA (ZAMBRAN),EAP/MLS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/15/2019
TAGS: ETRD ETTC ECON PREL PGOV CU VM
SUBJECT: VIETNAM-CUBA: TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT

REF: STATE 48487

Classified By: PolCouns Brian Aggeler. Reasons 1.4 (b/d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L HANOI 000456

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

FOR WHA/CCA (ZAMBRAN),EAP/MLS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/15/2019
TAGS: ETRD ETTC ECON PREL PGOV CU VM
SUBJECT: VIETNAM-CUBA: TITLE III OF THE LIBERTAD ACT

REF: STATE 48487

Classified By: PolCouns Brian Aggeler. Reasons 1.4 (b/d)


1. (C) Embassy contacts at the MFA and MFA-affiliated
Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam insist that Vietnam and Cuba
continue to enjoy warm "fraternal" relations. Absent
fundamental change in either country, there is little
prospect that Vietnam will substantially support U.S.
priorities for Cuba, as outlined in Title III of the Cuban
Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act.


2. (C) Specific answers to reftel questions are as follows:

A.) Has the host country, in Post's opinion, worked to
promote the advancement of democracy and human rights in Cuba?

-- No. Vietnam hews to a strict policy of non-interference
based on its "friendship to all" foreign policy and
consistently opposes all country-specific human rights
interventions. Beyond this, Vietnam maintains a cordial
relationship with Cuba, based on ideology and a shared
history as members of the Soviet-led COMECON.

B.) Has the host country made public statements or
undertaken other governmental actions, such as resolutions in
the national assembly condemning human rights abuses in Cuba,
or taken actions in support of civil society in Cuba through
host country's diplomatic missions or other fora?

-- No. In addition to the factors mentioned above, Vietnam's
National Assembly has little discretion to deviate from
policy lines dictated by the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV).

C.) Have there been any high-level diplomatic visits between
Cuba and the host country in the past six months?

-- According to Nguyen Khanh Van from the MFA Latin America
Office, there were no major diplomatic visits over the past
six months. The MFA did, however, report visits to Cuba by
less prominent officials including: the President of
Vietnam's General Confederation of Labor, Dang Ngoc Trung
(April 30 - May 4); Deputy Finance Minister Xuan Ha (March
9-14); members of the Hanoi People's Council (February
25-28); and the Minister of Information and Communications,
Le Doan Hop.

D.) What is the nature of investments (and names, if known)
that host country businesses have in Cuba?

-- According to Vietnam's Foreign Investment Agency, up to
the end of 2008 Vietnam had $44.54 million in investment in
Cuba, most of it in oil exploration projects by state-owned
PetroVietnam. In late 2008, Vietnam announced that the
state-owned Housing and State Development Corporation would
invest in several real estate tourism projects in Cuba, in
partnership with Cuba's Palmares Group. The first project,
according to Vietnamese press reports would be a housing and
recreation complex in Colodera Bauta, Cuba. In 2009, the
Vietnamese telecom firm Viettel, owned by the armed forces,
announced that it was considering investing in Cuban telecom
services.

E.) Are there any bilateral trade agreements or other
cooperative agreements between host country and Cuba?

-- In April 2009, the two countries signed an MOU to share
rice production expertise. Vietnam led a trade delegation to
Cuba in May 2009 that produced deals to supply Cuba with
plastic bags for sugar and a cultural promotion agreement for
Cuban artists in Vietnam, according to press reports. These
are the latest in a long series of cooperation agreements
between the two countries in areas such as construction,
biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, fisheries, oil exploration,
finance, culture and sports.

F.) Are there any exchange programs between host country and
Cuba, including but not limited to: scholarships for host
country nationals to study in Cuba; Cuban-paid medical travel
for host country nationals; and Cuban doctors working in host
country?

-- Vietnam and Cuba maintain an annual academic exchange
program that provides 20 university and graduate
scholarships, with half studying in Cuba, half in Vietnam.
There are no Cuban doctors working in Vietnam.
MICHALAK