Chairman of the External Relations Committee of the National Assembly Tran Van Hang had a working session with Chief Operating Officer of the European External Action Service (EEAS) David O’Sullivan in Brussels on Dec. 7.

The session was under the framework of the three-day visit to Belgium by National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung from Dec. 5.

The two sides reviewed bilateral cooperation between EU and Vietnam and exchanged views on international issues of mutual concern.

Hang praised the EEAS role in boosting the comprehensive relations between EU and Vietnam , especially in trade and culture.

He also mentioned several issues considered important in bilateral ties, namely negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and maritime security and safety in the East Sea . He expressed his wish that EU and the European parliament will support viewpoints and policies of Vietnam and other ASEAN countries on security structure in this region.

For his part, David O’Sullivan said bilateral relations with Vietnam are important.

He expressed his pleasure at the completion of negotiations of the Partnership Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between EU and Vietnam and agreed that it is necessary to restart FTA negotiations.

He said that Doha negotiations on global free trade saw no progress and it is time to boost bilateral trade activities. ASEAN and EU member countries should carry out bilateral free trade step by step and create an FTA framework between the two blocs in the future.

On East Sea issues, David O’Sullivan said related countries need to have a multilateral solution as tensions will influence regional socio-economic development.

On the process of building an ASEAN Community, he affirmed EU support to ASEAN integration. However, the integration level will be decided by each ASEAN member country.

On this occasion Hang repeated the invitation to senior officials of the EU, EP and EEAS to visit Vietnam to boost ties and increase the effectiveness of cooperation./.