Vietnam has asked the United States to delay the April 9 implementation of sky-high tariffs announced last week in a test of how much President Trump is willing to haggle over his protectionist trade agenda.
Vietnamese Communist Party chief To Lam was one of the first world leaders to speak with Trump last week after the U.S. president announced a flurry of tariffs on almost every country that exports to the United States. Vietnam was hit with a 46% tariff rate, among the highest.
Vietnam's economy has boomed in recent years on the back of soaring manufacturing and exports. The nation has benefited as companies have diversified supply chains in response to rising tension between Beijing and Washington in recent years.
The United States is Vietnam's biggest export market.
On Sunday, Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son met U.S. Ambassador Marc Knapper in Hanoi, according to a government dispatch. Son requested that Trump delay the enforcement of the tariffs while the two sides negotiate.
That echoed the contents of a letter circulating online, from Lam to Trump dated April 5, in which the Vietnamese leader asks Trump to postpone the implementation of the reciprocal tariffs for at least 45 days. The New York Times first reported on the letter and said it had obtained a copy. NPR has not independently confirmed the authenticity of the letter.
Another deputy prime minister, Ho Duc Phoc, who was appointed special envoy to the U.S., told companies on Friday that Vietnam was seeking a one to three month delay, according to the government. It said Phoc will visit the United States and Cuba from April 6-16, and while in the U.S. he would take part in a high-level policy dialogue.
Son told the U.S. ambassador that during Phoc's trip, he would be asking the U.S. side to prioritize the issue so that an agreement could be reached soon "for the benefit of the people and businesses of the two countries."
"The [U.S.] decision to impose reciprocal tariffs is inconsistent with the reality of bilateral economic and trade cooperation and does not reflect the spirit of the Vietnam-United States comprehensive strategic partnership," Son was quoted as saying.
The U.S. embassy in Hanoi did not respond immediately to emailed requests for a comment.
Negotiations with Vietnam could be an early test of the Trump administration's willingness to lower the tariffs that have been a centerpiece of his economic plans. After he announced them, stock markets around the world plummeted, and businesses have expressed mounting concern.
Son proposed that the two sides continue to coordinate and cooperate in all areas of the partnership, and he "emphasized that cooperation to overcome the consequences of war is a very important foundation in the relations between the two countries".
Many other countries have indicated a willingness to negotiate tariff rates with Trump, and some, including China, have retaliated with tariffs of their own.
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