US, Vietnam ink historic partnership in Biden visit

STORY: In a visit to Vietnam on Sunday, U.S. President Joe Biden secured deals on semiconductors and minerals as the strategic Southeast Asian nation promoted Washington to Hanoi's top-tier diplomatic status, alongside China and Russia.

The U.S. has been pushing for the upgrade for months with a strategic nation in the contested Indo-Pacific region.

"We can trace a 50-year arc of progress between our nations, from conflict to normalization, to this new elevated status."

Biden praised the upgrade at a news conference, noting the dramatic change from a half-century ago when American soldiers fought a brutal war in the the country.

Biden arrived in Hanoi to a ceremony organized by the ruling Communist Party that included school children waving American flags and honor guards carrying bayoneted rifles.

The focus of the visit includes another power to the north: China.

The upgrade in trade ties could help strengthen American access to Vietnamese exports of semiconductors and rare earth minerals, strengthening a supply chain that has proven vulnerable to changes in China's output and trade policy.

Asked about Beijing, Biden said he wasn't interested in containing China, but emphasized that stability required playing by the rules.

"China is changing some of the rules of the game."

Biden did not specify which rules he meant. His visit, and the deals brokered, aren't the end of this story: Officials and diplomats said top Chinese officials, possibly including President Xi Jinping, are expected to visit Vietnam in the coming days or weeks.