Vietnam and the United States established formal relations today for the first time since the end of the Vietnam War 20 years ago.
Senior officials of the two governments signed agreements in Hanoi settling claims to diplomatic and private property seized during the war.The accords triggered the opening, without formal ceremonies, of liaison offices in Hanoi and Washington, the first official diplomatic missions established by the two governments in each other's capitals since the war.
They agreed last year to open the liaison offices, which will function like embassies. But they cannot open full embassies until they establish diplomatic relations.
U.S. officials were expected to start work at the new, nine-story modern office building in Hanoi, next Friday after Vietnam's Tet lunar New Year holiday.
They said while the United States is getting 22 properties out of the deal, including the embassy the Americans evacuated dramatically during the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975, Vietnam is only allowed to reclaim one - the old South Vietnamese Embassy at 2251 R Street N.W. in Washington.
And that swap will not take place "for a few weeks" until the Americans have taken possession of all their property, one State Department official said.
Despite all this, State Department spokeswoman Christine Shelly announced that with the two agreements being signed today, "the United States will therefore open its Liaison Office in Hanoi (and) a reciprocal Vietnamese Liaison Office will open in Washington."
She said this fulfills an announcement made by President Clinton when, on Feb. 3, 1994, he lifted the 2-decades-old trade embargo against Vietnam and declared his intention to open a liaison office in Hanoi at a later date.
The two accords - covering property and other claims - will be signed by Hall, a fluent Vietnamese-speaker who served in Vietnam for five years between 1965 and 1975, and Vietnamese Vice Foreign Minister Le Mai.
U.S. officials said Vietnam has agreed to satisfy - with interest - all U.S. claims from the war period, totaling $203.5 million in private claims for oil equipment, houses and other possessions and the rest in government claims.
Some members of Congress had urged Clinton not to go through with the liaison office-opening, arguing that Hanoi had not done enough to resolve the cases of roughly 2,200 Americans still listed as missing from the war.
But administration officials said that while Hanoi could do more, it has accelerated and expanded its assistance since the embargo was lifted last year.
The administration believes opening liaison offices will enhance its ability to make progress toward that goal.
Currently, there are six State Department personnel in Hanoi and U.S. officials say that number will to rise to around 12, including diplomats and support personnel.
Also, there is a permanent mission of 10 Defense Department task force members working on the MIA/POW issue and every six weeks or so upwards of 100 military personnel come to Vietnam to investigate crash sites and do other MIA-related research.