U.S. Lifts Lethal Weapons Ban to Vietnam 40 Years After War
- Obama speaks at press conference as five-day Asia tour starts
- Vietnam-China ties increasingly strained over sea claims
Obama to Lift Lethal Arms Sales Ban to Vietnam
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President Barack Obama said the U.S. is lifting a decades-old ban on lethal arms sales to Vietnam as part of deeper engagement between the two countries that will eliminate one of the last vestiges of the Cold War.
More than 40 years after the end of a bitter war, Obama said the U.S. and Vietnam are broadening their relationship as a central component of a shift of American policy to the Asia-Pacific region. The decision will allow Vietnam to modernize its Soviet-era weaponry as it faces tensions with China over a maritime dispute.