Biden opens Vietnam visit by saying the two countries are ‘critical partners’ at a ‘critical time’

News Snapshot:

President Joe Biden opened a brief visit to Vietnam on Sunday by telling the country’s leadership that the two nations have a chance to shape the Indo-Pacific for decades to come. Biden said he hoped progress could be made on climate, the economy and other issues during his 24-hour visit. “Vietnam and the US are critical partners at what I would argue is a very critical time,” Biden told Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, during the public portion of their meeting at party headquarters. Trong agreed that their meeting presented an “excellent opportunity“ to...