President Barack Obama will meet Vietnam's Communist Party leader at the White House Tuesday for talks on trade and other issues, U.S. officials said Friday.
Nguyen Phu Trong is general secretary of the central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, but holds no government position. A White House statement said Mr. Obama looks forward to discussing with him "ways to strengthen further the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership."
Trong, the first Vietnamese Communist leader to visit the United States, will be arriving shortly after the 40th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War between his country and the United States. The two former foes normalized their relations 20 years ago and have moved closer together in the past year, as regional tensions involving China have increased in the region around the South China Sea.
U.S. officials said Obama's meetings with Trong also will focus on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), human rights and bilateral defense cooperation.
