Vietnam, U.S. to open offices

Vietnam, U.S. to open offices

HANOI (AFP): Vietnam's UN ambassador has said that Hanoi and
Washington could open liaison offices -- a big step towards
normal diplomatic links -- "in the next few weeks," a report said
here yesterday.

"The preparation is nearly finished. I hope the liaison office
will be officially opened in the next few weeks," Le Bang said in
an interview with the Ho Chi Minh City newspaper paper Thanh
Nien.

"Relations between Vietnam and the United States are
developing strongly," the ambassador to the United Nations told
the tri-weekly.

He said the liaison offices would "play the role of
consulates," adding: "Vietnamese citizens going to the United
States to travel or work, and U.S. citizens going to Vietnam,
will be able to get entry visas in Hanoi and Washington."