A handkerchief, illicit letters and secret visits -- the first three decades of love between a Vietnamese man and his North Korean sweetheart were counted out in stolen moments and small tokens of devotion.
But now this love story is being lauded as an example of the two countries' amity in the lead-up to this month's much anticipated second summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Hanoi.
The communist state is thrilled to be hosting the high-profile event in Hanoi, an opportunity for Vietnam to boost its diplomatic gravitas on the world stage.
But for the couple, their hopes for peace on the Korean peninsula also carry personal motivations.
"I wish... we can go back for visits more easily," 69-year-old Vietnamese Pham Van Canh told AFP.
He first met his future wife Ri Yong Hui in 1971 at a Pyongyang fertiliser factory, where she was working. Canh was one of hundreds of Vietnamese sent to fellow communist nation
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