Rubio, Vietnam’s foreign minister discuss trade, defense cooperation

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers’ meeting in Manila, the Philippines on Thursday, discussing trade and defense cooperation.

“Great meeting today with Vietnam’s Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung,” Rubio wrote on the US social media platform X.

He said the two discussed strengthening bilateral relations, rebalancing trade, and expanding defense and security cooperation between the two countries.