Phạm Gia Khiêm

Phạm Gia Khiêm (born 6 August 1944) is a Vietnamese politician, the Deputy Prime Minister (since October 1997) and Minister of Foreign Affairs (since 28 June 2006).

He was Minister of Science, Technology and Environment from November 1996 to September 1997.

Phạm was born in the Tu Liem district, Hanoi. He was a lecturer at Bac Thai College of Electrical Engineering from 1968 to 1970, and completed a Ph.D. in Metallurgy in the Czech-Slovakia Republic in 1975. He is fluent in English, Russian and Czech.

He made an official visit to the United States in March 2007, meeting with expatriate Vietnamese and visiting the Consulate General of Vietnam in San Francisco. [cite web|url=http://www.thanhniennews.com/politics/?catid=1&newsid=25948|title=Vietnam Deputy Prime Minister visits the US|publisher=Thanh Nien Daily|accessdate=2008-08-22] During the visit he stated he would look into the case of imprisoned journalist Nguyen Vu Binh after a request from U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; [cite web|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/16/AR2007031601685.html|title=Vietnam to Consider Freeing Journalist After Inquiry by Rice|last=Kessler|first=Glenn |date=March 17, 2007|publisher=Washington Post|accessdate=2008-08-22] Nguyen was later granted amnesty on 8 June 2007. [cite web|url=http://www.amnesty.org.uk/news_details.asp?NewsID=17376|title=Internet dissident Nguyen Vu Binh released|date=12 June 2007|publisher=Amnesty International|accessdate=2008-08-22]

References

External links

* [http://www.mofa.gov.vn/en/bng_vietnam/nr040824153458/ns070626135743 Biography at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs]
* [http://www.nni.nikkei.co.jp/FR/NIKKEI/inasia/future/2007/2007pro_khiem.html Biography at Nikkei]
* [http://www.un.org/ga/63/generaldebate/vietnam.shtml Deputy Prime Minister Phạm Gia Khiêm's address to the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly] , September 27, 2008