British official in Vietnam to boost accession to CPTPP
Minister of State Greg Hands of the UK Department for International Trade arrived in Hanoi on February 1 for high-level trade talks on how the UK joining of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will boost the economic firepower of the world’s most dynamic trade bloc, according to the British Embassy.
Minister of State Greg Hands of the UK Department for International Trade (L) meets with Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh on February 1. (Photo: British Embassy in Vietnam)
Hanoi (VNA) – Minister of State Greg Hands of the UK Department forInternational Trade arrived in Hanoi on February 1 for high-level trade talkson how the UK joining of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) will boost the economic firepower of the world’smost dynamic trade bloc, according to the British Embassy.
Vietnamwas the first leg of his three-day Asia-Pacific tour, which also includesMalaysia and Singapore. The visit aims to promote the UK’s engagement in the CPTPP, ofwhich Vietnam is a founding member.
It wasalso an opportunity to mark the 50th anniversary of the UK - Vietnam diplomatic relationsand discuss the thriving bilateral trade relationship, which has increased12.4% over the last year and is valued at 5.9 billion GBP (7.3 billion USD),the embassy noted.
With the next round ofCPTPP negotiations coming soon, the minister expressed the UK’s desire to finaliseaccession at the earliest opportunity.
Speakingof his visit, Minister Greg Hands said: “Joining CPTPP will add even moreeconomic firepower to this exciting and dynamic trade alliance, adding 2trillion GBP to CPTPP’s GDP.”/.
There remains potential for Vietnam and the UK to tap the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) and expand bilateral trade ties, said Ngo Chung Khanh, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Multilateral Trade Policy Department.
The British Embassy in Vietnam on December 14 officially announced a logo to celebrate the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries (September 11, 1973 - September 11, 2023).
The British Embassy in Hanoi and UNICEF on December 29 handed over 500,000 GBP (over 602,000 USD) in life-saving equipment to the Ministry of Health to assist recovery of Vietnam’s health system.
The People’s Committee of Cao Phong district in the northern province of Hoa Binh, the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, RYB Joint Stock Company and Cao Phong One Member Ltd, Co., on January 5 held a ceremony to mark the first shipment of seven tonnes of Cao Phong orange to the UK.
UK pharmaceutical exports to Vietnam witnessed a strong growth rate of 32% in the first nine months of 2022, according to British Ambassador to Vietnam Iain Frew.
