US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she plans to visit Vietnam next year, when the country will act as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, known as Asean.

Vietnam is preparing to host Asean meetings in April 2010 in Ho Chi Minh City and in October 2010 in Hanoi, according to the country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Clinton didn’t say which meeting she plans to attend.

Hillary Clinton visited Vietnam in 2000 along with her husband, Bill Clinton, who was US president at the time.

Khiem said in Washington at the press conference with Hillary Clinton that Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet has invited US President Barack Obama to visit Vietnam during the country’s term as chair of Asean.

“I cannot speak for the president’s schedule, but I know that the president shares my deep commitment to deepening and strengthening our relationship between our two countries and also the importance of Asean,” Hillary Clinton said, at the press conference with Khiem.

Source: Bloomberg