DEPUTY SECRETARY STEINBERG'S SEPTEMBER 27, 2009 MEETING WITH

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SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/09/30
TAGS: OVIP PREL PGOV PHUM ECON ETRD ASEAN BM KN VM
SUBJECT: DEPUTY SECRETARY STEINBERG'S SEPTEMBER 27, 2009 MEETING WITH
DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER PHAM BINH MINH.

CLASSIFIED BY: Michael Michalak, Ambassador; REASON: 1.4(B),(D)


1. (SBU) September 27, 2009; 2:15 p.m.; The Ministry of Foreign
Affairs; Hanoi.


2. (SBU) Participants:

U.S.
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The Deputy Secretary
Ambassador Michalak
Joseph Donovan, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
Scot Marciel, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, EAP
Rear Admiral Charles Leidig, Joint Chiefs of Staff
Ambassador Joseph DeTrani, Directorate of National Intelligence
Derek Mitchell, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
Pamela Park, Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary
Harry Kamian, Political Counselor, U.S. Embassy Hanoi
Michael Orona, Political Officer, U.S. Embassy Hanoi (notetaker)

Vietnam
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Standing Vice Foreign Minister Minister Pham Binh Minh
Le Hung Hoang, Deputy DG, MFA Americas Department
Tran Quang Trung, MFA Americas Department
MFA notetaker


3. (C) SUMMARY: Deputy Secretary Steinberg used his meeting with
Vice Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Hanoi on September 27 to
highlight the value the United States places on Vietnam's role as a
non-permanent member of the UNSC and its responsibility in assuming
chairmanship of ASEAN next year. The Deputy Secretary urged
Vietnam to work with the U.S. and other partners to encourage
positive change in Burma. Minh replied that Vietnam would do its
best as ASEAN chair next year, but stressed Vietnam would continue
to respect Burma's internal affairs. Minh predicted it would be
some time before Vietnam concluded a legal review to determine
whether it could deploy troops abroad as part of global
peacekeeping operations. The Deputy stressed USG concerns about
the deteriorating human rights situation in Vietnam, and encouraged
Vietnam to allow us to increase Mission staffing to support the
expanding bilateral relationship. VFM Minh welcomed the U.S.
leadership in the Mekong Initiative and said Vietnam was looking
forward to building on the momentum achieved in Phuket last July.
END SUMMARY.

A Valued Partner in the UNSC: Iran and North Korea
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4. (C) Deputy Secretary Steinberg opened the meeting by raising
the importance of Vietnam's role as a non-permanent member of the
UN Security Council during the last two years. He urged Vietnam to
back tough action on issues relating to North Korea and Iran,
including support of UNSC Resolution 1874, as Vietnam assumes the
Security Council presidency in October. Ambassador DeTrani added
that North Korea's letter to the UNSC of September 3 was a serious
step in the wrong direction; showing any weakness on UNSCR 1874
would only strengthen North Korea's position. VFM Minh responded
that Vietnam supported the Six Party Talks, had demonstrated its
commitment to non-proliferation, and had shared this position with
North Korean officials. Ambassador DeTrani pushed back, stressing
it was not enough for countries to support broad non-proliferation
goals. All member states must send a strong, united message to
North Korea that it must comply with UNSCR 1874. The Deputy
Secretary added that enforcement of UNSCR 1874 was paramount, and
encouraged Vietnam to use its coming UNSC presidency to exercise
real leadership on this important issue.

Importance of ASEAN Chair in 2010
--------------


5. (C) The Deputy Secretary expressed hope that Vietnam would work
to strengthen ASEAN when it assumes the chairmanship in 2010 and to
accelerate regional dialogue on issues of concern. VFM Minh said
Vietnam was conscious of the importance of the role it could play
and hoped to "turn the ASEAN charter into reality and work to unify
its members." He emphasized that Vietnam welcomed U.S.
reengagement in Southeast Asia and promised to work to strengthen
the Mekong Lower Initiative, which Minh claimed Vietnam was the
first country in the region to support. The Deputy Secretary
observed the Secretary was committed to initiative and looked
forward to building on the progress achieved in Phuket last July.
Minh noted Vietnam's concerns over climate change and rising sea

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levels. The Deputy Secretary agreed this could be an attractive
area for cooperation within the context of the initiative. OSD
PASD Mitchell Minh asked if Vietnam had concrete goals objectives
for ASEAN. VFM Minh deflected the question, but predicted it would
be difficult to achieve unity on the tough issues. When asked if
ASEAN could play a role in resolving disputes in the South China
Sea, Minh said "no," particularly since China is not a member.

Burma
--------------


6. (C) The Deputy Secretary told VFM Minh that the United States
had completed its Burma policy review. The U.S. would engage the
Burmese leadership and work with our partners, including ASEAN, to
promote positive change there. The Deputy Secretary stressed the
U.S. was not interested in "regime change." EAP DAS Marciel added
that the U.S. would be meeting with Burmese officials in New York
next week to discuss the new U.S. policy, and offer concrete steps
the Burmese government could take to address international
concerns. Afterward, the U.S. would ask its partners to reinforce
this message to Burmese leaders in their private discussions.


7. (C) VFM Minh replied that GVN welcomed the "new move by the
U.S," adding that U.S. willingness to engage Burma was a positive
development. However, he cautioned that Vietnam strictly respected
Burma's internal affairs. While Vietnam had "good relations" with
Burma and would do its best to serve ASEAN's goals, Vietnam would
continue to respect Burma's internal affairs. The Deputy Secretary
countered that the U.S. was cognizant of ASEAN's charter. However,
some internal developments in Burma impacted neighboring countries
and regional security. Therefore, countries in the region and
regional organizations like ASEAN had an important role to play in
promoting positive change in Burma.

The East Sea and China
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8. (C) The Deputy Secretary reiterated that the United States had
an interest in ensuring a peaceful resolution to disputes in the
South China Sea, consistent with the UN Law of the Sea. Vietnam
understood the U.S. position and also wanted "to find a peaceful
solution, through dialogue, to this very complicated problem," Minh
said. He added that China's claim was unacceptable and that in
order to create peace and stability, all claimants must be able to
register their concerns. Minh stressed that all countries in the
region recognized the importance of the South China Sea's shipping
routes and added that Vietnam was willing to "show good will" in
order to create stability in the region.


9. (C) Deputy Secretary Steinberg stated that the United States
placed great interest in improving its bilateral relations with
China and noted that this did not come at the expense of our
relationships with other countries in the region. He added that
the United States supported strong a bilateral relationship between
Vietnam and China. The Deputy Secretary emphasized that China must
prove that its intentions were peaceful and that its rise would be
transparent in order to reassure other countries in the region.
VFM Minh responded that Vietnam's overall relationship with China
was good, apart from the obvious disagreement on the South China
Sea, and hoped to increase China's relations with ASEAN next year.

UN Peacekeeping
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10. (C) The Deputy Secretary stated that Vietnam could play an
important role in contributing to the global demand for PKO troops.
He highlighted the Global Peacekeeping Operations Initiative
(GPOI),and encouraged Vietnam to increase its participation. Minh
responded that the GVN was "carefully considering its options,"
adding that he led a government delegation to Haiti as part of the
GVN's review process. The MFA is finalizing its decision-making
process. However, the MFA still needed to resolve outstanding
"legal aspects" of whether Vietnam could deploy troops abroad under
the existing constitution, a process that would take some time.
The Deputy Secretary noted that many other countries had overcome
similar issues and contributed troops to UN operations. Echoing
comments made by the Defense Minister, Minh identified three
possible areas of assistance if the GVN were to determine it could
contribute PKO troops: demining, medical assistance, and road
construction.

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Human Rights & Education
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11. (C) Deputy Secretary Steinberg stressed that a free press and
rule of law were vital to the stability and prosperity of any
country, especially a country such as Vietnam which is trying to
attract greater foreign investment. The Deputy Secretary
encouraged Vietnam to take another look at the USG's UPR
recommendations. Referring to his previous experience in academia,
the Deputy Secretary stated that the U.S. was interested in
exploring greater engagement on educational initiatives. However,
he added that free and open scientific research was needed if the
GVN hoped to reform its educational system and attract greater
investment, alluding to a recent Prime Ministerial decree
restricting the activities of independent research organizations.
Transparency and good governance played a vital role in educational
reform, he stressed. The Deputy Secretary raised concerns over the
detention of several journalists, bloggers and others interested in
the country's development, adding that detention of these
individuals had an impact on our bilateral relations. He said that
Ambassador Michalak would share a list of individuals of concern.
Minh acknowledged the importance of human rights to the bilateral
relationship. He said the GVN had accepted more than 80 percent of
the UPR recommendations, and was looking forward to the next round
of the U.S.-Vietnam Human Rights Dialogue in November.

Moving Forward on Trade
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12. (C) Touching briefly on trade, the Deputy Secretary stated
that the United States was interested in moving beyond our
Bilateral Trade Agreement, noting that the United States had been
frank and transparent on the issue of GSP. Vice Minister Minh
responded that he understood U.S. concerns regarding GSP, but
suggested that the United States might be "too protective." He
said that Vietnam hoped to have a better understanding of the
status of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) by November when
President Obama visits Singapore. The Deputy Secretary
acknowledged that that the U.S. was reviewing its position on TPP,
adding that stronger support from Congress as a result of positive
steps on issues of concern was likely needed in order to move
forward on trade issues with Vietnam.

Deepening the Relationship: Staffing and Visits
-------------- ---


13. (SBU) The Deputy Secretary congratulated Vietnam on the
establishment of a consulate in Houston. However, he pressed
Vietnam to allow for an increase in the number of staff at the
embassy in Hanoi and the consulate in Ho Chi Minh City. Minh
agreed that further discussion was necessary. He remarked that
while the United States and Vietnam had an on-going dialogue on a
number of issues at various levels, the one level that was missing
was President to President. He reiterated Vietnam's interest in
having President Obama visit Hanoi when Vietnam holds the ASEAN
chair next year.
Michalak