Citizen diplomacy — the act of building of direct people-to-people ties — has unlocked so many paths for Vietnam War reconciliation over the years. As the U.S.-Vietnam relationship enters a new era, youth leaders from both sides hope they can play a pivotal role in building similar relationships to address ongoing war legacies. Vietnam War veteran Theodore Hammett, PeaceTrees Vietnam Executive Director Claire Yunker, and U.S.-Vietnam Youth Leadership Cohort members Yia Vue and Hai Van Le discuss how introducing people earlier opens the door for empathy and cooperation and why young people don’t need to wait for permission to start making a difference.

Type: Blog

The legacies of the Vietnam War were once an obstacle to U.S.-Vietnam relations. But today, addressing those legacies has become “key foundation” for bilateral cooperation, says USIP’s Andrew Wells-Dang. And as ties continue to grow, youth from both countries “have a new vision for how our countries can work together.”

Type: Podcast

The road to reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam has not been a straight or easy one. In the years following the Vietnam War, citizen diplomats—veterans, families of the missing, humanitarians, Vietnamese Americans, and others—led the way, reaching across geopolitical and ideological lines. Governments eventually followed, and the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1995. This report draws on the theory and practice of reconciliation to identify lessons for strengthening the US-Vietnam partnership and advancing reconciliation between other postconflict countries.

Type: Peaceworks

When Nguyễn Xuân Thắng was young, he developed a passion for researching various documents, military studies, maps and weapons related to the Vietnam War. Eventually, he realized he could use these records to search for the remains of his maternal uncle, one of the many fallen North Vietnamese soldiers — or “martyrs,” as they are referred to in Vietnam — that were buried in unknown locations.

Type: Blog