Deputy PM receives Singapore's Second Minister of Trade and Industry
Hanoi (VNA) - Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu
Quang hosted a reception in Hanoi on March 20 for Second Minister for Trade and Industry
of Singapore Tan See Leng, who is on a visit to Vietnam.
During the meeting, the Deputy PM highlighted the sound development of the Vietnam – Singapore relations across a variety of fields in
recent times.
In 2023, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the diplomatic relations, and 10 years since Vietnam and
Singapore established the strategic partnership, the two countries signed many
important cooperation agreements, opening up new opportunities to boost
sustainable development cooperation between the two countries, especially in
new areas such as energy transition, digital economy, digital transformation,
and the green economy, he said.
The host said he supports cooperation in
new areas in line with global trends, thus contributing to further deepening the
Vietnam-Singapore strategic partnership in the coming time.
The two sides focused their discussion on the prospects of cooperation in areas of semiconductors, artificial intelligence,
innovation, digital and green economic development, and establishing free trade zones.
They also mentioned the possibility of
establishing legal support channels for Singaporean investors in Vietnam, the potential signing of agreements on carbon credits, and cooperation in
energy transition towards achieving the goal of net-zero emissions by 2050.
Regarding trade cooperation, two-way
trade between Vietnam and Singapore hit 9.1 billion USD in 2023, and is
estimated to reach 2.4 billion USD in the first quarter of 2024, up 8.3%
year-on-year, and higher than the average trade growth between Vietnam and
ASEAN (7.2%).
Singapore is the largest Southeast Asian
investor in Vietnam, and the second biggest investor among 143 countries and
territories, with a total registered capital of 73.5
billion across 3,274 valid projects.
Vietnam and Singapore also
closely cooperate in regional and international forums such as ASEAN, APEC,
WTO, particularly within frameworks and mechanisms led by ASEAN. Both countries are members of
major free trade agreements such as the Comprehensive and Progressive
Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), and the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement.
Vietnam and Singapore, as ASEAN members, signed FTAs with the UK and the European Union, facilitating stronger cooperation between their business communities./.