In a speech to be given in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi on Friday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen noted that the country is a critical partner for the United States in enhancing green energy sources and creating more durable supply chains.
Yellen, who is now travelling in Asia, stated to the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council that trade between the two nations had increased at a record rate last year after growing at a rate of roughly 25% annually for the previous 20 years.
Yellen said that investment in Vietnam’s semiconductor sector was also accelerating in a transcript of her prepared remarks that was released late on Thursday in Washington. “There is no sign that this momentum is slowing,” she added.
The United States is trying to lessen its reliance on Chinese supply chains by growing trade with reliable allies and expanding domestic manufacturing, so Yellen’s visit is part of an effort to enhance formal ties with Vietnam. However, Hanoi has encountered considerable opposition to its attempts due to what observers believe to be worries that China may perceive the action as unfriendly.
Twenty years after the Vietnam War’s conclusion, in 1995, the United States and Vietnam established regular ties. Five years later, they also agreed to a bilateral trade pact.
Yellen mentioned significant investments made in Vietnam by American businesses, such as Amkor, based in Arizona, and Intel, which has its largest assembly and testing plant in the world in Saigon. She also mentioned how Vietnam had grown to be a crucial node in the worldwide semiconductor supply chain.
China, where Yellen recently travelled, was not mentioned in her speech. She emphasised that the “friendshoring” campaign in Washington was not intended for “an exclusive club of countries. It is open and welcoming to developed economies, emerging markets, and developing nations equally.
She stated that Washington wanted to improve relations with developing and emerging economies, particularly through the Group of Seven’s commitment to mobilize $600 billion in infrastructure investments, which many believe is an intentional counterweight to China’s Belt and Road Initiative.
According to Yellen, the United States is working to assist other nations in addressing the escalating climate crisis. She specifically mentioned U.S. support for Vietnam’s Just Energy Transition Partnership, which aims to raise $15 billion in public and private funds to aid Vietnam in its transition to a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.
“Now, it is crucial to step up our cooperation to fuel these initiatives in Vietnam, assess project opportunities with the multilateral development banks, and deliver a Resource Mobilization Plan that serves as a roadmap for execution,” she said.
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