Decades after fleeing the fall of Sài Gòn as a child refugee, Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Hùng Cao sat across from President Tô Lâm in New York to negotiate the future of U.S.-Việt Nam defense and trade relations.
The Latest: On the morning of Sept. 22, New York time, President Tô Lâm met with Acting U.S. Navy Secretary Hùng Cao on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.
- The high-level talks focused on trade negotiations, with Tô Lâm describing economic and trade ties as “an important pillar and driving force” in the bilateral relationship.
The Details: During the meeting, Tô Lâm called for balanced, stable, and sustainable trade.
- He urged both sides to resolve outstanding issues in negotiations and move toward signing a reciprocal trade agreement.
- Furthermore, he proposed expanding cooperation in science and technology, innovation, advanced technology, semiconductors, energy, and supply chains, alongside the effective implementation of defense and security agreements.
On defense, Việt Nam continued to identify addressing the consequences of the war as a “key priority.”
- In response, Hùng Cao affirmed that the U.S. supports a “strong, independent, self-reliant, and prosperous” Việt Nam.
- He also expressed interest in expanding cooperation on maritime security, capacity building, and efforts to address the war’s aftermath.
Later that morning, Hùng Cao also met with Defense Minister Gen. Phan Văn Giang.
- Their discussions included cooperation on locating, recovering, and identifying the remains of American and Vietnamese service members.
U.S. Navy Secretary Hùng Cao: Hùng Cao left Việt Nam as a refugee in 1975, after the fall of the Sài Gòn government.
- According to Deseret News, he was 4 years old when his family arrived in Guam, a U.S. territory in the western Pacific, before moving to the U.S. mainland, where he later became a U.S. citizen.
Why It Matters: Việt Nam is currently the only country simultaneously facing three investigations under Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act.
- Washington has pressed Việt Nam on issues concerning intellectual property protection, excess capacity in certain industries, and trade fraud.
- The U.S. remains Việt Nam’s largest export market, with Việt Nam’s bilateral trade surplus continuing to grow.
- In a Sept. 21 interview with Bloomberg TV, Tô Lâm stated that Việt Nam wanted to narrow the trade imbalance by importing more American high-tech products, including aircraft, nuclear power technology, and road and rail infrastructure.
Thành Phương wrote this news article in Vietnamese and published it in Luật Khoa Magazine on September 23, 2026. The Vietnamese Magazine translated it into English.
