(VOVworld) – Top Vietnamese and US diplomats on Monday discussed opportunities and challenges for Vietnamese-US relations in the next 2 decades. Delegates analyzed diplomatic, economic, security and political relations since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1995 and looked to future opportunities.

Deputy Foreign Minister Ha Kim Ngoc said that Vietnam appreciated the US’s bigger role in the region and closer cooperation between the US and the Asia-Pacific would reap bigger results for both sides. The two countries should support ASEAN’s central role in the regional structure and its multilateral mechanisms, including the East Asia summit.

US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius said 2015 would create special opportunities for Vietnam and the US to reach the targets of the 2013 Comprehensive Partnership Agreement and conclude the Trans-Pacific Partnership negotiations. Mr. Osius said priorities for his ambassadorial term in Vietnam are to deepen the two countries’ economic, trade, scientific, and educational relationship.

The conference was co-organized by the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi, and the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).