US and Vietnamese medics join forces to heal old wounds

Vietnam and the United States have signed their first military-to-military co-operation agreement since the end of the Vietnam War and the normalisation of diplomatic relations.

The statement of intent (SOI) between the US Department of Defense (DoD) and the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence outlines how the countries will interact in matters of military medicine, according to the US Navy (USN) Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.

Signed in Hanoi on 1 August, the SOI will be the guiding document for military medical personnel exchanges, collaborative research, civil medical projects, conferences and workshops.

The signing ceremony follows a landmark meeting in October 2010 between former US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and his Vietnamese counterpart Phung Quang Thanh, in which the two agreed to more formalised military-to-military co-operation.

However, US parties to the SOI were careful to stress the benign character of the agreement. "This historic bilateral agreement is not about personalities or politics," said USN Surgeon General Vice Admiral Adam Robinson, who signed the document on behalf of the US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs. "Medicine and medical research are universal languages that all countries and cultures understand. Diseases affect us all in the same way."

Vietnam has been among the most vocal protesters in south and east Asia to China's recent claims to wide areas of territory, mineral and fishing rights in the South China Sea.

Washington and Hanoi established diplomatic relations in 1995, two decades after the cessation of hostilities in the Vietnam War.

In 2009 several major USN platforms made port calls in Vietnam, including the aircraft carrier USS John C Stennis (CVN 74), the 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) and the destroyer USS Lassen (DDG 82). Last year's visitors included the carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), the destroyer USS John S McCain (DDG 56) and the hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19).

The US Military Sealift Command salvage ship USNS Safeguard (T-ARS 50) underwent voyage repairs at Saigon Shipmarine shipyard in 2009 and the Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS Richard E Byrd (T-AKE 4) had similar work completed by Cam Rahn shipyard at Hong Koi in 2010.

IHS Janes