Our Vietnam, by A. J. Langguth
President Clinton's trip to Hanoi this past November was the first state visit by a U.S. president to an independent and reunified Vietnam. In his remarks to the faculty and students of Vietnam National University, Clinton recalled two past opportunities for peaceful and friendly relations with Vietnam: "Two centuries ago, during the early days of the United States, we reached across the seas for partners in trade and one of the first nations we encountered was Vietnam.