Secretary's Speech

Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez
Remarks at National Day of Vietnam
Washington, D.C.

Thank you, Ambassador Chien and the Embassy of Vietnam, for your kind invitation to be here tonight.

On behalf of President Bush, congratulations on your Independence Day. This day signifies your country’s unified struggle for a better life and the vision on which your nation is built.

• Today, we celebrate Vietnam’s Declaration of Independence and commemorate the anniversary of Ho Chi Minh’s passing.
• On September 2^nd at Ba Dinh Square 62 years ago, President Ho Chi Minh, in declaring Vietnam’s independence from colonial France, quoted almost verbatim the immortal words of the second paragraph of the 1776 American Declaration of Independence from colonial Great Britain.
• The opening paragraph of his speech was: “All men are created equal. They are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

We are very proud that we can play a role in helping Vietnam achieve that vision. Our bilateral relations have come a long way with the historic visit of President Triet to the United States and his meetings with President Bush.

I am proud to point out that economic relations continue to serve as a solid foundation and the “engine of growth” for our relationship.

• The modern cornerstone of our commercial relations was set in place in June 2000, with the signing of the U.S.-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement.
• That agreement has given the Vietnamese business environment a boost and attracted $10 billion of foreign direct investment last year.
• And there is room to grow: I’m leading the first Secretarial business development mission to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City in November.

I want to close by thanking Ambassador Chien for six years of service in Washington. During your tenure:

• U.S.-Vietnam two-way trade increased from $1.5 billion to $9.7 billion. (Between 2001 and 2006) The U.S. is Vietnam’s largest export market.
• Vietnam’s performance in hosting the APEC summit last year made a lasting and positive impression, and offers convincing evidence of Vietnam’s successful regional and global integration.
• In January of this year, Vietnam became the 150^th member of the World Trade Organization, supported fully by President Bush.

Your career reflects all the important developments that contributed to Vietnam’s phenomenal rise as a trading nation. I look forward to a continued prosperous relationship with you and Vietnam. Thank you.