At the meeting, Ambassador Daniel Kritenbrink expressed that for the United States, Viet Nam has been an important partner not only in the region but also in the world, and Da Nang is one of the most important cities of Viet Nam economically, politically, and militarily. He highly appreciated the positive developments in the cooperative relationship between Da Nang and the United States in the past few years, and especially after the success of APEC 2017. For example, in March 2018, the U.S. Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City has successfully organized the first American Education Fair in Da Nang; or the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson's visit to Da Nang was warmly welcomed by local authorities and the people. He also congratulated Da Nang on always achieving high rankings in the Provincial Competitiveness Index, a joint project between the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The United States Ambassador emphasized that in his role, he would be committed to strengthening and expanding the scope of cooperation between the United States and Da Nang in such areas as education, environment, humanitarianism, overcoming the consequences of war.
In response, Chairman Huynh Duc Tho welcomed the delegation's visit and thanked the US government for its support to Da Nang city, especially in hosting the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week. He noted that the United States remained one of Da Nang's most important partners in investment, trade, and non-governmental activities. Although the world economic and political situation is fast changing, he hoped that the relationship between Viet Nam and the United States, and between Da Nang and the United States would continue to flourish and achieve new results in the coming time.
* As of July 2018, the United States ranked 11th among 129 countries and territories in terms of FDI into Viet Nam with 884 investment projects and a total registered capital of over USD 8.9 billion.
In Da Nang, as of June 20th, the United States ranked third out of 43 countries and territories with a total investment of more than USD 519 million (accounting for 17.08% of total FDI in Da Nang), after Singapore and Japan. US investment projects focused on real estate, education, manufacturing, and other support services. In 2017, export turnover to the United States was estimated at $ 287 million, up 13.4% over 2016. Import turnover from the United States was estimated at $ 20 million (excluding automobiles).
(Hong Hanh)
