U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters announced that the United States and Vietnam have agreed to remove restrictions on air cargo services between the two countries. “This new agreement represents a major expansion in trade opportunities in Southeast Asia,” Secretary Peters said.
    
The U.S.-Vietnam aviation agreement reached in October 2003 allowed for an unlimited number of all-cargo carriers to operate between the two countries, with no limit on the number of flights.  Today’s agreement builds on that accord by removing restrictions on routing and on carrying cargo to or from third countries, the Secretary said.  The agreement also allows U.S. airlines to carry cargo between Vietnam and third countries without requiring a stop in the United States, she added.  The two sides agreed to meet no later than October 2010 to work toward further liberalization of the agreement, including additional rights for passenger services.
    
The agreement follows a full Open-Skies agreement reached last week with Laos. Secretary Peters also announced that the United States and Armenia today concluded a full Open-Skies agreement, the first aviation accord between the two countries.  With this agreement, Armenia becomes the 94th U.S. Open-Skies partner.