United States Vietnam Sign Bilateral Counternarcotics Assistance Agreement

United States Vietnam Sign Bilateral Counternarcotics Assistance
Agreement

(EXCERPT) Press Statement Richard Boucher, Spokesman Washington, DC
December 12, 2003

United States Vietnam Sign Bilateral Counternarcotics Assistance
Agreement

On the occasion of the visit of Vietnam s Deputy Prime Minister Vu
Khoan to the United States, the governments of the United States of
America and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam signed a bilateral
Letter of Agreement on Counternarcotics Cooperation on December 11,
2003, in Los Angeles. In addition to the Civil Air Agreement, this is
the second agreement signed during the Deputy Prime Minister s visit.
The Letter of Agreement commits both governments to establish and
support projects designed to combat the production and trafficking of
illicit narcotics and other forms of transnational criminal
activities. This agreement is an important step toward building a
strong cooperative effort in the fight against illegal drugs, and it
strengthens the broadening relationship between our two countries.

2003/1257

[End

Released on December 12, 2003

See

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/ for all press statements

---------------------------
Otis Willie
Associate Librarian
The American War Library
http://www.americanwarlibrary.com

>>>
The Letter of Agreement commits both governments to establish and
support projects designed to combat the production and trafficking of
illicit narcotics and other forms of transnational criminal
activities. This agreement is an important step toward building a
strong cooperative effort in the fight against illegal drugs, and it
strengthens the broadening relationship between our two countries.
>>>>

Although there is drug usage in Vietnam, the problem is not as severe as in
neighboring Thailand, Burma and Cambodia as pointed out by George Moore's
post the other day. That is probably due to the Vietnamese government's
severse punishment for drug traffickers, the death penalty. The Vietnam
government was willing to have diplomatic stand off with Canada and
Australia over Vietnamese national with foreign citizenship whom were
involved in drug trafficking in Vietnam. Though, Canada and Australia are
among countries that give Vietnam large foreign aids. As the results, the
vigorous campaign against drug usage in Vietnam is what the United States
wants to see, hear, and cooperate to stop that drug frontline which is
reaching closer to Vietnam as neighboring Cambodia is engulfed with youth
drug usage as pointed out by George's post.

Drug usage will leave to disease such as HIV which is already an epidemic in
Vietnam which unofficial figure is already more than 170,000 cases. By the
end of the decade, the number of HIV cases in Vietnam will reach 350,000
according to the UN. Drug usage will not only lead these victims to
devastating disease such as HIV, it also lead them to hopeless, to crime, to
poverty, to instability, to war which are creating a favorable environment
for extremist, for militant, and for terrorism. By the time the frontline
of drug spreads to countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippine
countries that have favorable extremist islamic militant terrorist, the
Pentagon maybe turn into rubble one more time.

As the Vietnamese defense secretary, Pham Van Tra visited the Pentagon a few
weeks ago, that same thought would be in his mind as he entered the Pentagon
or his host, defense secretary Rumsfeld's. Who would have thought, the
largest building complex in the world, the Pentagon, in the heart of the
most powerful country in the world would be attacked and turned into rubble
for the first time in its history? who would have thought that Vietnam, a
country of peace with no internal unrest or external crisis, with strong
economic growth, who is untouched by the extremist islamic resvolution that
is rocking the rest of SE Asia and the World would be turned into rubble
tomorrow? And that thought is shared in the meeting between the Vietnamese
defense minister with U.S officials, and it is shared in the signing of the
Bilateral Counternarcotics Assistance Agreement today. In other words, the
United States and Vietnam will work together even more closer to keep
Vietnam stable, prosperous, safe, and keeping the pentagon from ever turning
into rubble again.

Therefore, any effort that deemed to be counterproductive to Vietnam and
U.S's security will fail such as the Vietnamese human rights act in
congress. The legislation is designed to improve Vietnam's human rights by
cutting off aids to victim of HIV, treament for drug user, landmine victim
and orphan. The legislation also keeps Vietnam from becoming a more
capitalist society. However, it would be very productive to the security of
the United States, Vietnam and the rest of the world if the United States
increase or double such aids.