John Kerry flying to Vietnam today,for an event at the new American Fullbright University there

[karynnj]

From State Department schedule:
Secretary Kerry is traveling en route to Hanoi, Vietnam. He is accompanied by Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs and Spokesperson John Kirby, Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom David N. Saperstein, Senior Advisor to the Secretary David H. Throne, Deputy Chief of Staff Tom Sullivan, and Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Vice Admiral Frank Pandolfe. Please click here for more information.

From an interview last week:

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, I’m not going to go into the internal deliberations of the Administration yet. We have another 10 days. I’ve got another trip. I’m going to Asia, to Vietnam, where we’re going to have an official event regarding a new Fulbright University, which is an American university in Vietnam, which is quite extraordinary. And I just want to stay away from the politics of internal deliberations.

https://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2017/01/266745.htm

Here is an interesting article, from last year that shows that Kerry has long been involved in the roots of the Fullbright University. His connection goes back to when he was a young Senator, although that had roots in his experiences in the Vietnam War decades before that.

VietNamNet Bridge – In mid-1990, the young Senator John Kerry and his two young daughters visited Vietnam. The idea of cooperation in education to promote relations between the US and Vietnam ocurred to him from that trip.

The article goes on to discuss his connection over the decades. http://english.vietnamnet.vn/fms/special-reports/157084/john-kerry-and-the-journey-of-fulbright-university-vietnam.html PS Note that this is a Vietnamese site

[tblue37]

1. My daughter won a Fullbright Fellowship in 2005. She was in med school at the time, so

she took a 1-year leave of absence to do research and take a master's degree in Ireland in international health and public policy, after which she returned to complete med school.

It was hearing about Kerry's daughter winning a Fullbright Fellowship that led her to apply for one.

[karynnj]

2. Congratulations on having a daughter who has to be both brilliant and caring

She must be amazing.

[tblue37]

3. Yes, she is. I am very proud of her. BTW, she has a second master's from a US university,

in public health and social policy, and she is double-boarded as a doctor (i.e., certified in two different medical fields). She is also a professor at 2 med schools, in addition to practicing as a doctor in both of her specialties.

[karynnj]

4. Wow! nt

[karynnj]

5. Here is an article explaining part of why Kerry is visiting

This article speaks of while the pivot to Asia has been regarded as a failure, ties with Hanoi have warmed. They say the visit will have substantive value. They mention that Kerry will return to the area where he was a swiftboat captain. As anyone who read Tour of Duty knows, Kerry's service did not end when he left the service ... and his commitment on Vietnam continues to this day. For the US, it is symbolic as well.

When you attempt to cut and paste, the site also includes a note to not do that, but use the link -- so, for information, https://www.ft.com/content/5a749c66-d881-11e6-944b-e7eb37a6aa8e

[karynnj]

6. Kerry has arrived in Hanoi - here is a nice Washington Post article

S

ecretary of State John F. Kerry returned to Vietnam on Thursday for his fourth and final visit as the top U.S. diplomat, his presence embodying the transformation of the two countries from enemies to partners.
<snip>
In Vietnam at the close of his career in public office, Kerry will meet with government and ruling Communist Party officials and review the arc of the bilateral relationship in a policy speech. The capstone will be a riverboat trip in the Mekong Delta, where he captained a Swift Boat patrol vessel during the Vietnam War. Aides said he will go to the spot in the river in Ca Mau province where he earned a Silver Star.

The United States has been providing aid to help maintain the health of the river so it can continue as an economic engine of the region. It is being undermined by hydroelectric dams upriver and the impact of climate change — an issue to which Kerry is expected to devote much of his post-government life.
<snip>
In a sign of the remarkable degree to which relations have changed between Vietnam and the United States, the secretary of the Communist Party of Ho Chi Minh City, formerly known as Saigon, will host a dinner for Kerry on Friday night. By next year, the United States plans to send Peace Corps volunteers to Vietnam for the first time.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/kerry-arrives-in-vietnam-on-his-last-trip-as-secretary-of-state/2017/01/12/e156554d-4c23-4a85-bf74-1cee4a8e0f7b_story.html?utm_term=.2bf2d1f64094