EVFTA provides new driving forces for VN-EU partnership: Deputy FM

EVFTA provides new driving forces for Vietnam-EU partnership: Deputy FM

The signing of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) after years of negotiations will create new driving forces to lift the Vietnam-EU partnership to a higher level, said Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son.
EVFTA provides new driving forces for Vietnam-EU partnership: Deputy FM ảnh 1Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – The signing of theEU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam InvestmentProtection Agreement (EVIPA) after years of negotiations will create new drivingforces to lift the Vietnam-EU partnership to a higher level, said DeputyForeign Minister Bui Thanh Son.

The two agreements, signed in Hanoi on June30, feature wide-ranging commitments which cover many aspects of economy,trade, investment and sustainable development. They will open up hugeopportunities for the two sides to make the best use of their potential andsupport each other, the official added.

According to the EU, the EVFTA is the mostambitious agreement it has ever signed with a developing country. The signingof the agreements affirmed the shared interests of Vietnam and the EU inpromoting international economic connectivity, trade liberation and balanced,transparent and rule-based investment.

Along with the EU-Vietnam FrameworkAgreement on Comprehensive Partnership and Cooperation (PCA) reached in 2012,the two newly-signed agreements marked a significant transition in theVietnam-EU comprehensive cooperation partnership.

From a recipient of EU’s assistance for development,hunger eradication, poverty reduction and economic transition, Vietnam hasentered an equal and mutual beneficial partnership with the EU undercommitments of a new generation FTA, Deputy FM Son said.

He cited many research works that showedthe EVFTA will help Vietnam’s GDP grow by 4.6 percent and exports to the EUwill surge 42.7 percent in 2025. Meanwhile, GDP of the EU will rise by anadditional 29.5 billion USD and the bloc’s exports will increase by 29 percentin 2035.

So far, the EU has signed and implementedFTA with four Asian nations - Japan, the Republic of Korea, Singapore andVietnam, creating a cornerstone to foster the Asia-Europe economic connectivityand the ASEAN-EU cooperation.

The Deputy FM stressed that Vietnam’s participationin the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership(CPTPP) and the EVFTA demonstrates the country’s strong commitment to reformand comprehensive global integration, creating chances to bolster externaleconomy and complete the market economy mechanism.

It also showed Vietnam’s proactiveness inparticipating in and advocating the open and rule-based multilateral tradesystem, Son underlined.

The signing of the EVFTA and the EVIPA wasamong historic moments in the 30- year development of the Vietnam-EU relations,he noted, voicing his hope that the two agreements will soon be ratified by theNational Assembly of Vietnam and the European Parliament. -VNA
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