(VOVworld) – On Sunday, the Vietnamese embassy in the US presented Vietnam’s Friendship Order to Andre Sauvageot for his contributions to promoting Vietnam-US relations. Sauvageot served the US army during the Vietnam war and he has contributed significantly to bilateral ties. Sauvageot said: “I’m very moved. This is an honor that I never thought I would be given. It motivates me to continue helping Vietnam as long as I stay alive.”

Sauvageot volunteered to go to Vietnam in 1964. All he knew about Vietnam was through a book of the US army, which said the war was to save southern Vietnam from the north’s invasion. He said: “I knew nothing about Vietnam before I went there. I gradually understood that the just cause of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam was to fight any invaders to protect national independence and freedom.”

Sauvageot did not return to America but volunteered to stay in Vietnam for 9 years to learn about Vietnam’s land, people, and culture and find a way to persuade the US government to stop the war. Fluent in Vietnamese, he interpreted for many meetings between the two sides during and after the war. In addition to promoting bilateral political and economic ties, Sauvageot has been active in helping Vietnam protect its national sovereignty.