Dear AVS Investors and Friends in Vietnam:
The Honorable Mark McGovern, Consular Section Chief of the U.S. Consulate in Ho Chi Minh, was interviewed last week on Vietnam television and officially confirmed what I’ve been saying since President Trump’s series of immigration orders have triggered confusion worldwide: things remain as they were and it’s “business as usual” for the U.S. State Department’s visa processing.
The interview was rare in that most U.S. Consulates abroad remain as confused as the rest of us regarding what new policies are being changed, when, and how; most have been silent, spawning rumors in high volume visa nations like India, Mexico and China. The Mr. McGovern’s interview once again affirmed AmConGen HCM’s proactive efforts within its jurisdictional community, in sharp contrast to other consulates and the decision to publicly discuss the current situation – despite its many vagaries — did much to assuage fears in the Vietnamese community, currently besieged by wild rumors of random visa cancellations and other untrue events. As a former U.S. visa officer who in his career interviewed over 20,000 aspiring U.S. visa applicants from the other side of the visa window, I am acutely aware of the fear, uncertainty, and stress associated with applying for a U.S. visa, and that is only exacerbated by the “fake news” – really social media gossip which spreads like a wildfire in today’s environment of instant communications.
HATS OFF to Mr. McGovern and the entire Visa Section of AmConGen HCM for their continued commitment to providing accessibility, responsiveness, and transparency to the people of Vietnam!
Here is the link, you can fast forward to 8:00 to go directly to the starting point of the anchor’s interview with Mr. McGovern, which is overdubbed in Vietnamese:
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