Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) Brussels (VNA) – An article published on Belgium’sbrusselstimes.com on December 12 hailed Vietnam as a sustained developmentpartner and destination of foreign investment for the European Union (EU) inSoutheast Asia.
The article said the EU has been making efforts to promote digital and greentransformations not only within the union but also in developing countries andregions in Southeast Asia and Africa. Cooperation between the EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is expected to somewhat repair the international supply chains problems,rebooting the globalisation process that has been declining. EU regionalpartners, such as Vietnam have great potential to promote stronger and moreeffective cooperative relations for the benefit of their respective regions andcitizens.
In its relations with the ASEAN, the EU has demonstrated itsrole as a reliable development partner, striving towards the ambitious goal ofcontributing to peace, stability, and prosperity of the two regions andglobally. In this process, Vietnam has emerged as a strong partner in addressingemerging global and regional challenges. While many countries face difficultiesand potential recession risks, Vietnam's economic growth continues to recoverpositively with GDP.
Accordingto the article, Vietnam is the onlycountry in the Asia-Pacific region and one of the four countries in the world thathas its credit rating upgraded by Moody's. With its business and investmentenvironment continuously improving, Vietnam is increasingly gaining strongertrust amongst foreign investors and in the international financial markets. Inthe first nine months of this year, foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnamwas estimated at 15.4 billion USD, up 16.3% over the same period last year.
The Vietnamesegovernment has particularly advocated to improve the quality and efficiency ofFDI capital to the country, prioritising environment-friendly projects withadvanced technology. This development has opened up new cooperationopportunities for EU and Vietnamese enterprises. With many similarities inpolitical wills and strategic interests, Vietnam and EU member states have thepotential to promote stronger and more effective cooperation, it added.
Global challenges,including climate change, pollution, and environmental degradation, are also ofmajor concerns to Vietnam. Energy security has become a global issue, forcingmany countries to adjust their use of fossil energy and reduce greenhouse gasemissions. Vietnam strives to become an active member of the Just EnergyTransition Partnership (JETP) framework, launched by the G-7 group by remainingcommitted to become carbon neutral by 2050, phase out coal by 2040, enddeforestation, and reduce methane emissions by 2030.
Furthermore, in October, Vietnam was elected tothe UN Human Rights Council for the 2023-2025 term. It showed Vietnam's commitmentto promoting and protecting human rights. With the new role, Vietnam will havethe opportunity to contribute to the promotion of human rights in the worldbased on cooperation and dialogue.
About Vietnam’srelationship with the EU, the article said it is currently considered to be atits prime in history. From an aid recipient, Vietnam has now become an equaland mutually beneficial partner. Currently, Vietnam and the EU have close tieswith many cooperative frameworks, such as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement(EVFTA), which took effect on August 1, 2020.
The EU is Vietnam'sleading trading partner with the former being the third largest export marketand the fifth largest import market of Vietnam. The EU is also the fifthlargest foreign investor in Vietnam with a total registered capital of 27.6billion USD by August 2022, it said./.
