DHAKA: In his first visit to Vietnam as America’s top diplomat, John Kerry urged the country’s leaders to strengthen their commitment to human rights and allow more freedom of expression, including on the Internet.

More than four decades after he served in the Vietnam War, Kerry has returned as secretary of state to seek closer trade and security ties with a country that helped shape his political thinking as a young naval officer.

Even as he praised Vietnam’s economic transformation, Kerry said lasting growth depended on promoting basic human rights and freedoms.

‘Vietnam has proven that greater openness is a great catalyst for a stronger and more prosperous society and today Vietnam has a historic opportunity to prove that even further,’ Kerry told US and Vietnamese leaders and students, reports The Straits Times.

BDST: 2047 HRS, DEC 14, 2013
Edited by: Robab Rosan, Current Affairs Editor