Hanoi Postcard: Vietnam tames media invasion but sees upside on WTOP| HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Journalists covering the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may want space to work and food to fuel them through the long days, and they won’t hesitate to say so. But…
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Journalists covering the summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may want freedom to work and food to fuel them through the long days, and they won’t hesitate to say so. But Vietnamese officials see an upside to hosting media from around the world.
In welcoming more than 2,600 foreign journalists, Vietnam has a unique opportunity to polish its image and, hopefully, boost tourism and investment. Vietnamese are keen to show themselves as members in good standing of the global community, to the extent of helping broker a major diplomatic entente as Kim and Trump meet for a second time to discuss North Korea’s nuclear program.
The number of journalists in Hanoi for this week’s meeting is just slightly short of the 3,000 who attended the leaders’ first meeting last year in Singapore.
Vietnam has much experience in hosting major events such as 2017’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings, said Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang, and Vietnam’s social and political stability is a plus in ensuring security.
Hanoi was chosen for the summit location roughly two weeks ago, and she said whatever bumps might occur would be the result of having very little time to prepare for the biggest number of foreign media to descend on Vietnam’s capital.
Reporters generally agree security during the summit is tight — maybe a bit too tight for their liking.
When Kim transferred at the China-Vietnam border from his personal train to an armored limousine for the two-and-a-half hour drive to Hanoi, Highway One was closed to traffic and thousands of police and military personnel were deployed along the route.
