Found this an interesting quote by a US senator when he was talking about Vietnam and its entry into the WTO. Here is the full source BBC
Of course when the greater good is worth a couple of billion it is obivious to see by how much human rights concerns are outweighted.
Following a trade deal Vietnam signed with Mexico last month, it then had to complete a bilateral deal with the US in order to join the WTO club.
Human rights
However one potential obstacle to a smooth accession surrounds the issue of the US Congress' attitude to Vietnam's human rights record.
Before securing entry into the WTO Vietnam must be granted permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) by Congress.
But on a visit to Hanoi in April, US House of Representatives Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, called on Congress to pass a deal because the "greater good" outweighed human rights concerns.
Vietnam signed a previous bilateral trade agreement (BTA) with the US in July 2000, five years after the two former enemies renewed diplomatic relations.
Since then Vietnamese exports to the US have grown to more than $6.5bn in 2005.
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