The Vietnamese-US cooperation in culture, science and education is one of the main pillars of bilateral ties embracing the message of reconciliation, peace and development

Baseball exchanges

Phil Rognier, an American war veteran, says the best way to eliminate enmities in the past is for a “cultural handshake”. Rognier, who is also the Executive Director of the First Swing Foundation, a non-governmental organization dedicated to baseball training, has brought baseball to Vietnam. He was surprised at the Vietnamese people’s enthusiastic welcome at the introduction of the sport in 2009. This encouraged him to promote the sport in Vietnam. The First Swing Foundation has helped to establish dozens of baseball clubs in Vietnam. During the US students’ spring vacation, the Foundation brought members of the Seattle Klouters Club to Vietnam to visit Vietnamese primary and secondary schools. Vinschool and Vietnam International Primary School in Hanoi were among those attending these exchanges. Phil Rognier said: "What we do is to support. We don't give money. We give items you need and help people have fun. It creates a common winner that they can learn form each other. They're going to have educational environment, having fun competing, playing games and learning that we are the same. Hopefully, that generation is not gonna to have a war".

Like Phil, Americans students who came to Vietnam for the first exchange in 2009 were surprised at the warm welcome given by the Vietnamese. The exchanges created an opportunity for them to learn more about Vietnam, a country that they only know through history books. Ryan Young, an 18-year old member of the Seattle Klouters: "When I said I was going on the trip, everyone said "Oh my god, I'm so jealous". Everything I heard about was the war because it was all talked about the country in history. I had a teacher who said that his brother came and everyone was nice. I figured out that everyone is nice"

Vinschool in Hanoi is among those attending these exchanges.

The First Swing Foundation has also brought Vietnamese students to the US for baseball exchanges and to learn more about the US and its culture.

Enhancing educational cooperation

Over the past few years, culture-education exchange programs between Vietnam and the US have been steadily promoted. The number of Vietnamese students in US universities and colleges has increased. In 2014, it was estimated that about 20,000 Vietnamese students went to the US to study. The number of education exchange and cooperation programs between Vietnam and the US at various education levels has risen. In 2013, the Vietnam International School in Hanoi brought their students to the US as part of an exchange program with the George Washington school. Nguyen Vinh Tam is the Chair of the Executive Board of Vietnam International School: "The program creates a good opportunity for Vietnamese and American students to get to know other better and promote solidarity. I think we should close the book on the past and look towards the future. When American and Vietnamese students understand the other’s countries and peoples, they will form a bridge linking the two nations”.

During his visit to Vietnam, former US President Bill Clinton decided to set up the Vietnam Education Foundation to grant 5 million USD worth of scholarships annually for Vietnamese students to study science, community health and environmental science. Over the past 15 years, VEF has managed to get more than 100 universities in the US involved in cooperative programs with Vietnam. Bui Phuong Lan, an expert on North America and a Senior Advisor to the VEF, said the exchange of students has paved the way for further cooperation between Vietnam and the US: “Over the years, these exchanges have helped Americans understand us better. This will help develop soft power and engender trust between the two countries”.

The war ended 40 years ago. “Cultural handshakes” are bringing Vietnam and the US and their younger generations closer to each other.