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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Vietnam's Ho Chi Minh city on Saturday (December 14, 2013) on a visit to push forward ties with the communist country.

Kerry's visit to Vietnam and later the Philippines aims to emphasize U.S. presence in South East Asia.

It comes as Washington steps up efforts to court its former war rival to establish a trade pact and security ties with a country on the doorstep of regional superpower China.