Deputy foreign minister visits EP to discuss ratification of Vietnam-EU deals

Hanoi (VNA) – Permanent Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son paid a visit to the European Parliament (EP) from January 13 to 16 to discuss the ratification process of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

During the trip, the deputy minister had meetings with Vice Presidents of the EP Heidi Hautala and Dimitrios Papadimoulis, Chairman of the EP’s Committee on International Trade (INTA) Bernd Lange, and 12 parliamentarians from key political parties in the EP like the European People’s Party, the Social Democratic Party, the Renew Europe, the European Green Party, and the European Conservatives and Reformists Party.

At the event, Son affirmed that the Vietnamese Government treasures and highly values the recent development of the Vietnam-EU Comprehensive Partnership and Cooperation in all fields.

He highlighted the significance of the EVFTA and the EVIPA to the two sides’ political, economic and trade relations, which will create a framework for reinforcing the bilateral cooperation in sustainable and inclusive development, as well as the EU’s ties with ASEAN and the Asia-Pacific region in the context that Vietnam is holding the ASEAN chairmanship in 2020.

Vietnam will continue working closely with EP leaders and EU agencies to implement all commitments in the agreements, the diplomat said, asking the INTA and parliamentarians in the EP to keep close coordination with agencies of the Vietnamese National Assembly and Government to promote the scheduled ratification process so as to ensure the two deals will take effect soon and generate practical benefits for the peoples, labourers and businesses of both sides.

For their part, EP and INTA leaders affirmed the economic and political importance of the two agreements to the enhancement of the EU’s role and stature in the Asia-Pacific region.

They said the INTA is coordinating with EP agencies to get the ratification as scheduled, and they will keep working closely with Vietnam in this regard.

The EU side applauded Vietnam’s preparation for the implementation of the deals, especially the commitments related to sustainable development.

At the meetings, the EP parliamentarians also spoke highly of Vietnam’s recent attainments in socio-economic development and integration into the world while congratulating the country on its posts as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and the ASEAN Chair in 2020.

The EU will continue cooperating with and assisting Vietnam during the coming development process, including in promoting sustainable and inclusive development, they added.

The EVFTA, signed in Hanoi on June 30, 2019, has extensive and comprehensive commitments covering economy, trade, investment, and sustainable development issues.

According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment, the EVFTA and EVIPA will help Vietnam raise its gross domestic product (GDP) by 4.6 percent and exports to the EU by 42.7 percent by 2025.

Meanwhile, the European Commission estimate that these agreements will help the EU add 29.5 billion USD to its GDP and increase its exports to Vietnam by 29 percent by 2035./.