The visit of the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group is in line with the Vietnam-US Comprehensive Partnership and contributes to maintaining peace, security, stability and cooperation in the region, a spokesperson of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated.
| The USS Theodore Roosevelt docks at Tien Sa port, Danang, on March 5. Photo: Zing |
USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71), escorted by USS Bunker Hill (CG 52), arrived in Danang on March 5 for a five-day port visit. This is the second visit by a US aircraft carrier after first made by USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) exactly two years ago, more than four decades after the Vietnam War ended.
“This is an ordinary of a US Navy carrier group, part of activities to commemorate 25 years of normalization of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and the United States,” Spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said at a regular press meeting on Thursday.
During the port visit, the crew members will participate in the welcome ceremony, joint press meeting, courtesy calls to authorities of Danang and Vietnam Navy. There will be also professional exchanges and community service projects, Hang informed.
US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink affirmed in a statement on the port visit that “our relationship is the strongest it has ever been.”
“This visit demonstrates the strength of our bilateral relations and highlights our continued cooperation with partner countries and our strong support for the region, including institutions such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), of which Vietnam is this year’s chair,” said Rear Adm. Stu Baker, commander, Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9.
The visit of the USS Theodore Roosevelt is a demonstration of US commitment to the region and that its presence in the South China Sea is welcomed by Vietnam. Vietnam is signaling that it supports the presence of the US Navy in the South China Sea as long as it contributes to peace and stability, Carl Thayer, Emeritus Professor at the University of New South Wales, wrote in several notes.
“It underscores an important policy declaration in the 2019 Vietnam National Defense White Book that “Vietnam will consider developing necessary, appropriate defense and military relations with other countries…,” Thayer commented.
