President Obama will pay homage to Vietnam War veterans when visits that country next week, a White House spokesman said.
“It’s impossible for any American president to go to Vietnam without acknowledging the history between our two countries,” press secretary Josh Earnest said. “The president will acknowledge that history, but will do so with the courageous service of hundreds of thousands of patriotic Americans in mind.”
Recognizing that normalized relations with Vietnam requires a delicate balance, National Security Adviser Susan Rice met with veterans groups last week to discuss the Obama’s trip, Earnest said.
“The truth is there’s a whole generation of Americans that proudly served this country in Vietnam,” Earnest said. That era’s mistake was the “tendency to allow political concerns with American foreign policy to interfere with showing respect and gratitude to fellow Americans who had put themselves at great peril to serve their country.
“And I think this president, like many Americans, is determined to make sure that never happens again,” Earnest said.
