(29 Mar 2005)
1. Various of ship USS Gary on Saigon River
2. Vietnamese military boat on river
3. Wide shot of Vietnamese soldiers watching USS Gary
4. US soldiers onboard USS Gary
5. Various of Vietnamese soldiers standing and watching ship
6. Various of US crew docking ship at port
7. Low angle of US sailors on boat with US flag in background
8. Vietnamese watching from nearby shop window
9. US Commander, Rob Marin (white hat) followed by US Ambassador to Vietnam, Michael Marine (black suit)
and other crew members disembarking on red carpet
10. Various of Commander Marin and Ambassador Marine shaking hands with Vietnamese navy officers
11. SOUNDBITE: (Vietnamese) Bui Van Nga, Representative for Vietnamese Navy in Ho Chi Minh city:
"I hope the US will create favourable conditions for Vietnam's development."
12. Various of press briefing on boat
13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Commander Rob Marin, US Navy:
"USS Gary is the third US naval warship to visit Vietnam since 1973. Our arrival this year marks the 10th anniversary of normalised relations between our two countries. This visit also demonstrates how both countries are looking forward to future bilateral ties and the economic benefits it will bring both nations in the region."
14. US soldiers standing in line during press briefing
15. Tilt from US flag to Vietnamese military cameraman
16. Lieutenant Commander Quoc Bao Tran, US navy officer (of Vietnamese origin) meeting family members on boat
17. SOUNDBITE: (English) Lieutenant Commander Quoc Bao Tran, US Navy:
"It's wonderful, I'm overwhelmed, overjoyed, of course excited. It's just amazing going down the Saigon River. I'm excited and yet my heart's at peace at the same time. I'm looking forward to seeing the place where I grew up, I was born and initially nurtured, so yeah, it's real nice."
18. Photo op of Quoc Bao Tran with is wife and children on the boat
19. Wide shot of ship
STORYLINE:
The USS Gary warship docked in Vietnam's Saigon Port on Tuesday one month before the country celebrates the 30th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.
The frigate became the third US Navy vessel in as many years to make a port call in the communist country since the Vietnam War ended on April 30, 1975.
Officials on both sides said the latest visit symbolised warming military relations between the former foes.
The ship visit also marks the 10th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
Commander Rob Marin said the visit demonstrated how both countries were looking forward to future bilateral ties.
The timing of the five-day goodwill visit was not selected to coincide with the war anniversary, but a Vietnamese military official said the arrival was symbolic of how far the two countries have come in the past 30 years.
Colonel Bui Van Nga, the highest ranking Vietnamese Navy officer to greet the ship, said he hoped the US would "create favourable conditions for Vietnam's development."
Lieutenant Commander Quoc Bao Tran, a US navy officer of Vietnamese origin who fled the country by boat when he was seven-years-old, said he was "overwhelmed" about returning to Vietnam.
He said he was looking forward to seeing the place where he was born.
The USS Gary is part of the US 7th Fleet based in Yokosuka, Japan.
It is in the same family as the USS Vandegrift and USS Curtis Wilbur, which made port calls to Ho Chi Minh City and Danang in 2003 and 2004, respectively.
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