Pompeo In Visit To Vietnam Pledges $2Mln In US Aid For Typhoon Recovery - State Department

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 30th October, 2020) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a visit to Vietnam on Friday announced that the United States would provide $2 million in new assistance to help the country recover from a devastating typhoon, Principal Deputy Spokesperson Cale Brown said.

� "Pompeo expressed condolences over the loss of life due to significant flooding as a result of Tropical Storm Linfa and Typhoon Molave and was pleased to announce an additional $2 million in USAID assistance to support response efforts, bringing total funding from the US government to more than $2.1 million to date," Brown said in a readout of the secretary's meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in Hanoi.

During the meeting, Pompeo also reaffirmed the strength of US-Vietnamese ties and underscored the two countries' mutual commitment to "a free and prosperous Indo-Pacific region," Brown said.

While in Vietnam, Pompeo also met with Security Minister To Lam to discuss bilateral security cooperation in both the Mekong region and the US, Brown said.

The top US diplomat also held a separate meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh to emphasize "support for the sovereignty of Southeast Asian nations international law, and a free and open Indo-Pacific," the spokesperson said.

�Pompeo's visit to Hanoi was the last stop on his five-nation tour of region, following his visits to India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and the Maldives.