Exchange of Messages Between the President and President Diem of Viet-Nam on the Occasion of His Fifth Anniversary as National Leader.
[Released July 11, 1959. Dated July 4, 1959]
Dear Mr. President:
I extend to you my congratulations and sincere good wishes on the occasion of your fifth anniversary as national leader of Viet-Nam.
The world has watched with admiration the progress made by Vietnam in the five years since you assumed leadership. It is now a country strong in its determination to preserve its freedom and active in promoting the development of its economy. We in the United States are aware of your own indispensable role in bringing about this remarkable progress. It is a task in which we are proud to have been associated with you.
I wish you, Mr. President, and the people of the Republic of Vietnam, continued success in advancing toward your goal of a better life in freedom.
Sincerely,
DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER
Note: President Diem's reply of July 9 follows:
The President
The White House
Washington
I greatly appreciate your thoughtful message of congratulations on the fifth anniversary of my accession to office. On this occasion we in Viet-Nam remember with deep gratitude the warm friendship and active support of the United States during the darkest days of our struggle against colonialism and communism and are looking forward to an ever closer friendship and cooperation between our two countries in the years to come. Please accept my heartfelt thanks for your kind message and my most sincere wishes for your personal happiness and well-being and for the prosperity and welfare of the great American nation.
NGO DINH DIEM
Dwight D. Eisenhower, Exchange of Messages Between the President and President Diem of Viet-Nam on the Occasion of His Fifth Anniversary as National Leader. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/235137