Vietnam. On 2 October 2016, U.S. Navy destroyer and submarine tender made the first port visit to Cam Ranh Bay since 1975. A U.S. Navy aircraft carrier () visited Vietnam in March 2018. According to the Vietnam Foreign Ministry, the visit would "contribute to maintaining peace, stability, security, cooperation and development in the region". In May 2017, the U.S. delivered six 45-foot Defiant-class patrol boats to the Vietnam Coast Guard. The cooperation in matters of their naval capabilities suggests that the shared security concerns over the South China Sea has strengthened the U.S.-Vietnam military relationship. The U.S.-Vietnam defense relationship, however, is limited by historical memory and Vietnam's multivector foreign policy. While fears about regime change have lowered, the U.S.' frequent criticism of Vietnam's human rights situation is understood in the context of the Vietnam War and creates worry in Vietnam about the U.S.' true intentions. This may serve to limit the scope and scale of military cooperation. Similarly, with its multivector foreign policy, Vietnam avoids aligning too closely with any particular regional power, and in particular limits its engagement with the U.S. to avoid upsetting China. To that end, Russia, not the U.S., is the largest arms exporter to Vietnam. Principal U.S. officials Ambassador – Marc Knapper Consul General – Marie C. Damour Diplomatic missions The U.S. Embassy in Vietnam is located in Hanoi. The U.S. Consulate General is located in Ho Chi Minh City. The Vietnamese Consulate General to the U.S. is located in San Francisco, California. In 2009, the United States received permission to open a consulate in Da Nang; in 2010, Vietnam officially inaugurated a consulate general in Houston. Of Vietnam Washington, D.C. (Embassy) San Francisco (Consulate) New York City (Consulate) Houston (Consulate) Of the United States Hanoi (Embassy) Ho Chi Minh City (Consulate) See also U.S.-Vietnam Dialogue Group on Agent Orange/Dioxin U.S.-South Vietnam relations U.S. Military Assistance Command in Vietnam Vietnamese Americans References General Specific Further reading Demmer, Amanda C. After Saigon's Fall: Refugees and US-Vietnamese Relations, 1975–2000 (Cambridge University Press, 2021, focus on restoration of relations. Matray, James I. ed. East Asia and the United States: An Encyclopedia of relations since 1784 (2 vol. Greenwood, 2002). excerpt v 2 External links History of Vietnam - U.S. relations Fallout of the War from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives Vietnam visa for U.S citizens Vietnam Bilateral relations of Vietnam