Secretary Antony J. Blinken And Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh Before Their Meeting

PRIME MINISTER CHINH: (Via interpreter) (In progress) in my own name. Mr. Secretary, I wish to thank you for representing the Honorable President Joe Biden to visit Vietnam and share your condolences with our country for the passing of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. He played a very important role in many of the important milestones in the Vietnam-U.S. ties, such as in the establishment of the Strategic Partnership back in 2015, and recently he was the one behind the promotion - the efforts to upgrade our bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. And he was also key in mending the wounds of the past in the spirit of putting the past behind, building upon similarities, respecting differences, and striving towards the future to bolster the relationship between our two countries.

And in reality, this guideline has proven conducive to both countries. Thus, with his passing, current leaders of Vietnam will continue to follow in his footsteps in best harnessing our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. And today, as you visit Vietnam and pay condolences with the family of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, we are deeply touched. I know that you have a very occupied schedule. You will leave immediately after this for other endeavors as well. So due to that, thank you for this. Thank you very much, and I wish to hear from you.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, Prime Minister, it's very, very good to see you again, although I wish it were under different circumstances. But we very much share on behalf of the United States, President Biden, our deepest condolences to you, to the Vietnamese people, on the passing of the general secretary. And just as you said, he was a man of remarkable vision who really did extraordinary things to bring our countries closer together, and as you said, healing the wounds of the past and building a partnership for the present and for the future.

For President Biden, one of the highlights of our administration was his state visit here and the signing of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Our task, I think, now is to build on the work that the general secretary did, to every day make real the vision that he had, because I think it's not only profoundly in the interests of the people of Vietnam and people of the United States, but it sets a very, very powerful example for the rest of the world, and that's something that the United States and Vietnam uniquely can offer.

So for us it's an honor - a sad honor, but an honor - to be here to be able to share our condolences and to say that the general secretary will be long remembered in the United States as the person who built a powerful, strong bridge between our countries for the future.

PRIME MINISTER CHINH: (Via interpreter) Thank you, and I share your view on these matters and on the insights that you have just outlined. We shall continue to mass implement the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership reached between General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and President Joe Biden last year. On this occasion, I wish to extend my best wishes of good health to President Joe Biden and to Vice President Kamala Harris, and may the Democrats -