Bush Opens Stock Exchange in Vietnam

Dressed in traditional "ao dai," leaders of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) walk to a garden of at the National Convention Center for a group photo session in Hanoi Sunday, Nov. 19, 2006. From front: Peruvian Vice President Luis Giampietri; U.S. President George W. Bush; Russian President Vladimir Putin; Thai Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont; Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong; Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono; and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. (AP Photo/Hoang Dinh Nam, Pool) (Hoang Dinh Nam - AP)

"Vietnam is serving as a model of how people ought to react," Bush said.

The president's last stop in Vietnam was a tour of the Ho Chi Minh City history museum where he and the first lady were treated to a drum and dance. Dressed in bright red and gold costumes, the young performers pounded kettle drums and waved bright flags as they stepped, turned and ran about a stage outside the building. Bush bounced his head and tapped his foot in time with the music.

Bush's trip to Asia was his first appearance on the world stage since his Republican Party lost control of Congress and was rebuked for the unpopular war in Iraq.

To Bush's dismay, he was unable to deliver a promised agreement on normal trade relations with Vietnam. It was snarled in Congress but the administration expressed confidence it eventually would be approved.

Vietnam's economy is booming, the fastest growing in Asia, and the country is the world's second-largest exporter of rice. But the benefits have not reached most people. The per capita income is less than $700 a year.

In a city usually teeming with motorcycle traffic, streets were cleared for Bush's motorcade. As he rode by, people waved, laughed and cheered. It was a contrast to the subdued reaction of residents in Hanoi, where Bush participated in the summit and conferred with the leaders of China, Russia, South Korea and Japan.

Bush was in Hanoi to attend the 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

The White House supported the summit's closing statement prodding North Korea to return to nuclear disarmament talks and urging nations to keep the pressure on by enforcing U.N. Security Council sanctions.

But the administration was at a loss to explain why the statement was simply read as part of the chairman's wrap-up statement, and not issued as a written document. Another oddity was that the section about North Korea was not translated into English when the statement was read.

U.S. officials later said that the reason the North Korea statement was delivered orally, rather than written, was because China did not want to sign a document with Taiwan. Beijing regards Taiwan as a breakaway colony and did not want to put it on equal footing, the U.S. officials said.

At the summit, Bush met separately with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao to discuss strategy for yet-to-be-scheduled talks with North Korea. The administration sent U.S. envoy Christopher Hill to Beijing for further consultations.

In their public remarks, Bush and Putin celebrated a U.S.-Russia agreement for Moscow's entry into the World Trade Organization. Bush said Russia's admission to the group was "good for the United States and good for Russia."

With Putin and Hu, Bush also pressed for a U.N. Security Council resolution to pressure Iran to abandon nuclear weapons. It was unclear whether Bush made any headway in persuading China and Russia to drop their reluctance to go along.