Pompeo points to Vietnam as example of improved relations

Pompeo is meeting with senior Vietnamese officials in Hanoi on Monday. The visit follows weekend stops in Japan and North Korea, where he has been seeking progress in denuclearization negotiations with the North.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo waves as he walks through the streets of Hanoi, Vietnam, Sunday, July 8, 2018. Pompeo is on a trip traveling to North Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Abu Dhabi and Brussels. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik, Pool)

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is extolling improved relations with Vietnam as a model for rapprochement with North Korea.

Pompeo is meeting with senior Vietnamese officials in Hanoi on Monday. The visit follows weekend stops in Japan and North Korea, where he has been seeking progress in denuclearization negotiations with the North.

Despite Pompeo characterizing the talks as productive, North Korea reacted angrily to what it called “gangster-like” demands from the US.

In Hanoi on Sunday, Pompeo appealed to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to replicate Vietnam’s dynamic economic growth by embracing normalized ties with the US He says the evolution of post-conflict relations
between the US and Vietnam is proof that America’s foes need not remain enemies.

Pompeo is at the midpoint of a round-the-world trip.

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