Ambassador pledges best efforts to further Vietnam-US ties It is a great honour and major responsibility to be accredited to the US at a special time, said Vietnam Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh. On February 23 (Washington DC time), Vietnam Ambassador to the US Pham Quang Vinh presented his credentials to President Barack Obama. On the occasion, a Radio Voice of Vietnam (VOV) reporter interviewed Ambassador Vinh about his key tasks during the working term. Following are key excerpts from the interview: VOV:You have just submitted your credentials to US President Barack Obama. Could you tell about Obama’s assessment of the US – Vietnam relations after 20 years of normalized relations? Ambassador Vinh: President Barack Obama highlighted some key points regarding the relationship between the two countries. First, he applauded the signing of an agreement to upgrade the bilateral relations to a comprehensive partnership in 2013 that is seen as a cooperation framework of strengthened relations. Second, 2015 is of great significance for anniversary celebrations of bilateral relations and this is a special opportunity for both sides to expand and deepen affiliation across a variety of fields including politics-diplomacy, science-education, defense-security as well as regional cooperation. Third, President Obama also laid stress on the role of the US-Vietnam ties within the cooperation framework with Asia, notably in increased cooperation on issues relating to non-traditional security such as climate change, natural disaster control and prevention and maritime security Finally, Obama said the Vietnam Ambassador would have plenty of opportunities to augment and deepen the bilateral relations during his working term. For this review, I think that the US attaches high importance to fortifying its ties with Vietnam in accordance with the comprehensive partnership framework that the two countries have developed. VOV: 2015 is the anniversary year of the Vietnam-US diplomatic relations and high-level exchange visit is one of the highlights of this year's celebratory activities. Could you please elaborate on this activity? Ambassador Vinh: The fact shows that since late last year, the two foreign ministries have actively worked out plans for the 20th anniversary of normalized diplomatic relations in 2015 with a major focus on senior delegation exchange. Recently, US Secretary of State John Kerry extended an invitation from the US administration to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to visit the US this year. We also expect President Obama may consider a visit to Vietnam in the special year. If the two visits are made, they will certainly achieve important results, adding fresh impetus to bilateral ties in the time to come.Both sidesare working hand in hand to do well with the celebrations with high-level exchange visits being a focal point. VOV: Could you please tell about your personal feelings through credentials presentation ceremony? Ambassador Vinh: It is a great honour and major responsibility to be accredited to the US at a time when the two sides have set up a comprehensive partnership. Over the past two months, I had a host of meetings with US senior officials and scholars who all had positive thinking about the relations between Vietnam and the US, and expressed a desire for a stronger ties in the future. I will have to do my utmost as a greater contribution to pushing relations between the two nations forward, especially this year- a starting point in my term as Vietnam ambassador the US and an anniversary year of the Vietnam-US normalized relations VOV:Thank you very much. VOV