Hanoi (VNA) – “The 2 Sides Project”, a feature documentarythat follows the journey in Vietnam of six US sons and daughters, who had alllost their fathers during the war in the Southeast Asian country, was screenedin Hanoi on November 27.

As part of a project of the same name, the documentary,filmed in 2015 and completed in 2017, captures the story of US and Vietnamesesons and daughters, who shared the loss of their fathers during the war and metfor the first time in December 2015.

The screening in Hanoi attracted the participation of 17Vietnamese and six US sons and daughters, who shared the story on thescreen. 

The event took place as part of a trip to Vietnam by a USdelegation from the “2 Sides Project” (2SP) to enhance the people-to-people exchangebetween the two nations. Launched in 2015, the 2SP aims at connecting childrenof fallen Vietnamese and US soldiers on the Vietnam – US war, encouragingexchanges between them to share losses and difficulties.

Earlier, the 2SP delegation led by founder and executivedirector of the project Margot Delogne met with Nguyen Tam Chien, head of the Vietnam-USSociety.

During their Vietnamese trip from November 25 to December10, the delegation is scheduled to visit a high school in Y Yen district in thenorthern province of Nam Dinh, which was bombed by the US on October 10, 1967.They will plant trees in commemoration of victims of the raid, visit a site inNghe An where the father of a member in the delegation went missing, and visita number of Vietnamese martyrs’ families. They will also tour scenic locationsin Quang Ninh in the north, Thua Thien – Hue, Quang Nam and Da Nang in thecentral region, and Long An and Ho Chi Minh City in the south.

Vietnam-US relations have developed significantly since thetwo countries set up diplomatic ties in 1995. From enemies at war, the twonations improved their relations to become comprehensive partners in 2013,opening the way for expanded cooperation in multiple fields – from politics,diplomacy, economy, trade, and investment, to security and defence, culture,education, science and technology, to the settlement of war aftermaths, andpeople-to-people exchange.

Since 2015, the two sides have accelerated the exchange ofhigh-level visits, which have deepened the bilateral Comprehensive Partnershipand fostered the development of ties on the basis of equality and mutualbenefit, and with respect for each other’s independence and political regime.

Two-way trade between the countries soared from 500 millionUSD in 1995 to 50 billion USD in 2017. Vietnam is the US’ biggest export marketin Southeast Asia, meanwhile the US remains in the top 10 investors in Vietnam.

Coordination in addressing the aftermaths of war is ofspecial concern to the two sides, contributing to trust-building in theirComprehensive Partnership. Vietnam has worked effectively with the US insearching for missing US soldiers in the country while the US has also takensteps to assist in the clearance of unexploded ordinances (UXOs) and AgentOrange/dioxin detoxification.

Vietnam and the US have also expanded cooperation in thefields of culture, education, science and technology, and people-to-peopleexchange. It was estimated that about 30,000 Vietnamese are currently pursuingdegrees in universities and colleges in the US.-VNA