Panetta Visits Cam Ranh Bay in Vietnam

Department of Defense Photo Essay

  • Vietnamese Army Maj. Gen. Nguyen Cong Son, deputy chief of the office of the minister of defense, greets U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta upon his arrival in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. Panetta is the first defense secretary and the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit the Vietnamese port since the end of the Vietnam war in 1975 and the normalization of relations between the U.S. and Vietnam 17 years ago. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • Chief Mate Fred Cullen of the Military Sealift Command USNS Richard Byrd points out something to U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. Cullen took Panetta on a short ride out to the Byrd, where he spoke to the ship's crew. Byrd is the first U.S. ship to dock in Cam Ranh Bay in 38 years. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta waves to the personnel of the USNS Richard Byrd in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta walks through the USNS Richard Byrd with Military Sealift Command Captain John Sargent, right, in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta speaks to crew members aboard the USNS Richard Byrd and their Vietnamese counterparts in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta speaks to members of the press on the deck of the USNS Richard Byrd in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DoD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta awards the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal to an officer on the deck of the USNS Richard Byrd in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo
  • U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta disembarks from the USNS Richard Byrd in Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, June 3, 2012. DOD photo by Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo