All Eyes on Hanoi: City as a reminder of reconciliation

World
Europe

03:25

Hanoi is a symbolic location for this summit, a reminder that reconciliation with an old enemy is possible. CGTN's White House correspondent, Jessica Stone, is in Hanoi for the summit. She spoke to two survivors of the U.S. war in Vietnam about how old foes became friends.

North Vietnam, 1972. American B-52s dropped 20-thousand tons of bombs in just 11 days.

CHUCK SEARCY US VIETNAM WAR VETERAN "When the B52 crashed into the lake, apparently, it just fell out of the sky."

One of those planes is still resting in this lake—tucked away in a Hanoi neighborhood. Chuck Searcy fought in Vietnam as a U.S. soldier, and returned in 1992.

CHUCK SEARCY US VIETNAM WAR VETERAN "The amazing thing was that we were welcomed by everyone with open arms."

Searcy now advises a non-profit working to rid Vietnam of unexploded mines.

CHUCK SEARCY US VIETNAM WAR VETERAN "I felt a great responsibility, and I felt a great opportunity to represent the sentiments of a lot my friends. I think they would very much support the effort to rebuild the relationship between the U.S. and Vietnam and to recognize we should never have been enemies."

For the Confucianist Vietnamese, restoring harmony is a deeply-held value.

Nguyen Qui Duc lost 16 years with his dad during the war. His father became a political prisoner, spending time at the infamous Hanoi Hilton before being shipped to a re-education camp.

NGUYEN QUI DUC VIETNAMESE AMERICAN RADIO BROADCASTER "People say how can you forgive the fact that your father was taken away, and you lived 16 years without your father? I say, well if I'm bitter about it, it's not going to get me anywhere. It's not going to get me the 16 years back."

But Duc says cultural values weren't the only reason Vietnam welcomed Americans back, there was also a need to rebuild.

NGUYEN QUI DUC VIETNAMESE AMERICAN RADIO BROADCASTER "And if you compare the 20 years of conflict to the benefit of being friends with the world, then the choice is clear."

And you can see the benefits of friendship all around this city. Vietnam is now one of the fastest-growing economies in the world.

JESSICA STONE HANOI, VIETNAM "Hanoi has bridged the divide between old enemies before. It was here in 1995, that the American diplomatic mission was established, the first in Vietnam in nearly two decades. And five years later, U.S. President Bill Clinton arrived with a message for the Vietnamese people."

BILL CLINTON FORMER US PRESIDENT "Finally, America is coming to see Vietnam as people have asked for years as a country, not a war."

Chuck Searcy says the American soul-searching that occurred after the Vietnam war, holds a lesson for Pyongyang.

CHUCK SEARCY US VIETNAM WAR VETERAN "The North Korean friends could learn a lot from Vietnam about how to maintain their integrity, their sovereignty and their independence at the same time that they accept friendship and shared contributions of other countries, including the U.S."

As this city's landscape shows, Vietnam is still restoring balance – between reminders of war and monuments to peace. Jessica Stone, CGTN, Hanoi, Vietnam.