The path forward: key developments in normalization between the United States and Socialist Republic of Vietnam from 1986 to 1988

Abstract The normalization of relations eluded the United States and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam even fifteen years after the fall of Saigon. Despite both sides maintaining negotiations on several issues, including Indochinese refugees, the accounting of missing American soldiers, and the Third Indochina War, tangible bilateral exchanges remained absent. While Hanoi’s embrace of Doi Moi in December 1986 initiated a pragmatic foreign policy, more impactful to US–Vietnamese diplomacy was Ronald Reagan’s decision to appoint General John Vessey as presidential emissary. Vietnam viewed Vessey’s position as proof that the US sought sustained, high-level negotiations. Moreover, they resulted in tangible humanitarian exchanges. This paper shows how Vessey’s appointment was the catalyst for stronger US–Vietnamese relations.