PANO - State President Truong Tan Sang hosted a reception for the visiting delegation of the Associated Press (AP), one of the largest US news agencies, led by its President and CEO Gary Pruitt on June 11th in Hanoi.

President Sang welcomed the visit, noting Vietnam and the US are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the normalization of bilateral relations.

He highlighted that AP was one of the media agencies that helped change the view of Americans on the war in Vietnam through vivid pictures of the reality on the battlefield, including the photo of “Napalm Girl” in 1972 by Nick Ut and monk Thich Quang Duc burning himself in 1963 by Malcolm Browne.

State President Truong Tan Sang (right) welcoming AP's CEO Gary Pruitt.

 

He also expressed his hope that as one of the largest news agencies in the US, AP would continue working for friendship, solidarity, and cooperation between Vietnam and the US, contributing to peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.

For his part, the AP CEO said the delegation’s visit aims to explore the current context in Vietnam and organize events to foster mutual understanding and diplomatic ties between the two countries. He noted that the AP representative office has operated in Hanoi for decades, saying he is proud of the way the news agency covered the war in Vietnam. He promised that in the future, AP would continue covering socio-economic development in Vietnam for the US and the world.

The AP delegation then visited late General Vo Nguyen Giap's house at 30 Hoang Dieu Street. Vo Dien Bien, the General's son, expressed his thanks to the AP delegation and presented an English book about General Vo Nguyen Giap to the AP CEO, who expressed his deep respect for Vietnam’s great General. He handed over a photo collection about the Vietnam War by AP reporters to the General's family.

The same day, an exhibition featuring the Vietnam War through AP’s photos opened in Hanoi. Over 50 photos by AP's war reporters will be on display at the exhibition center at 45 Trang Tien Street from June 12th to 26th. All photos then will be presented to the Vietnam History Museum.

Source: VNA/PAN

Translated by Anh Tien