On the occasion of attending the High-Level General Debate of the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, combined with bilateral activities in the United States, on the morning of September 21 local time (the evening of September 21 in Hanoi), President Luong Cuong and his spouse, together with a high-level Vietnamese delegation, arrived in Seattle, Washington State, to carry out several working sessions.

Accompanying the President were Politburo member and Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, alongside senior leaders of various Vietnamese ministries and agencies.

During his program in Seattle, President Luong Cuong held meetings with Washington State Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck; a delegation of Oregon State legislators led by Representative Nguyen Ba Loc, Chairman of the Oregon House Committee on Economic Development; Stephanie Pope, President and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes; and Ron Vachris, President and CEO of Costco. He also witnessed the aircraft handover ceremony between Boeing and Vietjet at Boeing’s factory in Seattle.

1. Meeting with Washington State Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck

At his meeting with Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck, President Luong Cuong emphasized that Vietnam regards the United States as one of its most important partners, and sees Washington State as a key local partner and a major economic and commercial hub.

The President appreciated the achievements of cooperation in recent years, particularly in trade, education, aviation, and energy. Stressing the vast potential for further collaboration, he called for maintaining the momentum through increased delegation exchanges, facilitation of trade and investment, and the strengthening of cooperation in science, technology, artificial intelligence, logistics, clean energy, and deep-sea ports, including partnerships between Washington State and Ho Chi Minh City.

2. Meeting with the Oregon State Legislative Delegation led by Representative Nguyen Ba Loc

Describing Oregon as the “Silicon Forest,” a leading the U.S. center for high technology, semiconductors, and renewable energy, President Luong Cuong underlined Oregon’s importance as a partner in advancing sustainable and high-growth cooperation with Vietnam.

Vietnam, he affirmed, welcomes and is ready to facilitate Oregon’s enterprises and institutions in expanding cooperation, investment, research, and development. He encouraged Representative Nguyen Ba Loc and fellow legislators to continue supporting the bilateral relationship, fostering collaboration in trade, science, technology, and innovation, and assisting Vietnam in developing a green economy, semiconductor industry, and high-quality human resources. He also expressed hope for the U.S. recognition of Vietnam’s market economy status and the removal of restrictions on high-tech exports to Vietnam.

3. Meeting with Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Stephanie Pope

In her discussion, Stephanie Pope outlined Boeing’s cooperation strategies with Vietnam, affirming Boeing’s commitment to working closely with Vietnamese airlines to translate agreements into concrete outcomes.

She highlighted that Vietnam currently operates 17 Boeing aircraft through Vietnam Airlines, while Vietjet has signed contracts for more than 200 aircraft, with the first deliveries taking place during this visit. She emphasized the importance of the Southeast Asian market for Boeing’s global business.

President Luong Cuong welcomed Boeing’s cooperation, expressing satisfaction with the timely delivery of new aircraft to Vietnamese partners, and called on Boeing to ensure the effective fulfillment of its signed commitments.

4. Witnessing the Boeing-Vietjet Aircraft Handover Ceremony

Immediately following the meeting with Boeing leadership, President Luong Cuong attended the handover ceremony where Vietjet officially received its first Boeing 737-8 from the 32 billion USD order of 200 aircraft.

The ceremony, held at Boeing’s Delivery Center in Seattle, coincided with the 30th anniversary of the normalization of Vietnam-U.S. relations. It marked a significant milestone not only for the partnership between Vietjet and Boeing but also for the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two nations, contributing to bilateral trade, investment, and job creation in the United States.

5. Meeting with Costco President and CEO Ron Vachris

During his meeting with Costco’s leadership, Ron Vachris reaffirmed Costco’s intention to strengthen cooperation with Vietnamese suppliers to provide quality products suited to U.S. consumer demand. He noted that Vietnam’s exports to Costco’s supply chain could exceed USD 1 billion annually, including textiles, footwear, furniture, seafood, cashews, and coffee.

Vachris stressed Costco’s interest in developing a strategic cooperation framework to expand production capacity, diversify supply chains, and promote ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) standards.

President Luong Cuong highly valued Costco’s initiatives, emphasizing that Vietnam’s strategic priorities align with strengthening participation in global value chains, especially in sectors where Vietnam holds strong advantages such as agriculture, seafood, textiles, footwear, and light industry. He also welcomed Costco’s leadership role in ESG adoption, affirming Vietnam’s readiness to cooperate in green technology transfer, production upgrades, emission reduction, and renewable energy use.

Highlighting Vietnam’s nearly 100 million-strong consumer market, President Luong Cuong expressed support for Costco’s plans to establish a long-term presence and investment in Vietnam.

On the evening of September 21 local time (morning of September 22 in Hanoi), President Luong Cuong and his spouse, together with the high-level Vietnamese delegation, departed Seattle for New York aboard a special aircraft to attend the High-Level General Debate of the 80th United Nations General Assembly and continue bilateral activities.

Welcoming the delegation at John F. Kennedy International Airport were Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States Nguyen Quoc Dung, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations Do Hung Viet, and officials of the Vietnamese Embassy and Mission.

This marked President Luong Cuong’s first multilateral diplomatic engagement at the world’s largest global forum, coinciding with the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations. The visit also carried added significance as it took place during the second anniversary of the establishment of the Vietnam - the U.S. Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the 30th anniversary of the normalization of bilateral relations.