V-P heads to Vietnam despite mystery Hanoi 'health incident'

HANOI • US Vice-President Kamala Harris pushed ahead with a trip to Vietnam yesterday, after delaying the visit over concerns due to an unexplained health incident potentially related to the mysterious Havana Syndrome.

Ms Harris, eager to woo allies in a bid to counter China, arrived in Vietnam's capital Hanoi after a three-hour delay in Singapore and an unusual statement from the US Embassy in Vietnam blaming "a recent possible anomalous health incident" for the delay.

"Anomalous health incident" is a term the US government often uses to describe Havana Syndrome, a condition with symptoms such as dizziness, nausea, migraines and memory lapses, so named because it was first reported by American officials based in the US Embassy in Cuba in 2016.

"The Vice-President's office was made aware of a report of a recent possible anomalous health incident in Hanoi, Vietnam," the US Embassy statement said. "After careful assessment, the decision was made to continue with the Vice-President's trip."

At least two US personnel in Hanoi will be medically evacuated from Vietnam after Havana Syndrome incidents over the weekend, an NBC reporter said on Twitter. Hours before Ms Harris' visit, US staff said the incidents involved strange sounds, NBC reporter Josh Lederman said, citing unidentified senior US officials.

A US National Academy of Sciences panel in December found that a plausible theory is that "directed energy" beams caused the syndrome, CIA director William Burns has previously said.

The CIA sees a "very strong possibility" that the syndrome is intentionally caused, and that Russia could be responsible, but is withholding definitive conclusions pending further investigation.

Moscow denies involvement.

Ahead of Ms Harris' trip, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh held an unannounced meeting with Chinese Ambassador Xiong Bo, during which Mr Chinh said Vietnam does not align itself with one country against any other.

"The fact that China's ambassador insisted on a meeting with the Vietnamese prime minister shortly before Ms Harris landed shows how anxious Beijing is that its communist neighbour may tilt towards the US," said Mr Murray Hiebert, a South-east Asia expert at Washington's Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

REUTERS