Laserfiche WebLink
Internationally, the government has attempted to increase cooperation with the US, India, <br />Japan, and neighboring Association of Southeast Asian Nations countries as a regional <br />counter - balance China's influence. <br />Despite Japan's considerable leverage as Vietnam's largest bilateral donor, it has <br />repeatedly failed to publicly comment on Vietnam's deteriorating rights record. <br />The relationship between Vietnam and the US continues to grow closer. In September <br />Vietnam opened a new consulate in New York, and the US Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City <br />expanded with the opening of an American Center. The US and Vietnam are also among <br />those currently negotiating to join the Trans - Pacific Partnership, a multilateral free trade <br />agreement. <br />In January and May United Nations independent experts who had visited Vietnam in 2010 <br />published their findings. The UN special rapporteur on human rights and extreme poverty <br />issued a broadly positive report but urged the government to ratify and implement major <br />human rights treaties, including the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman <br />or Degrading Treatment. The UN special rapporteur on minority issues issued a more <br />critical report, acknowledging some progress but raising concerns about the potential <br />denial of religious freedom and "other serious violations of civil rights." The rapporteur <br />also pointedly noted that obstacles during her visit "impeded her ability to obtain <br />perspectives other than those in consonance with official Government positions." <br />