WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The two leaders met as Vietnam and other Southeast Asian states are in a tense row with China over sovereignty in the South China Sea.
"I got an invitation to Vietnam,” Obama said after meeting with Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the White House. “I certainly do look forward to visiting your beautiful country sometime in the future.”
The United States and Vietnam have expanded economic and political ties over the past two decades as the countries came to terms with their troubled history.
“What we have seen is the emergence of a constructive relationship that is based on mutual respect, and that has benefitted the peoples of both countries,” Obama said.
The President noted that in the last two years, the United States and Vietnam have made significant progress on deepening “cooperation in the areas of education, science, technology, climate change, public health as well as security issues.”
