Minister for Trade of the Republic of Korea (RoK)’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Yeo Han-koo (Photo: Reuters) During his online meeting with Vietnamese DeputyMinister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh on March 23, Yeo said since late2021, the RoK has conducted internal discussions and prepared procedures tojoin the CPTPP.
He also highly valued the close economic ties betweenVietnam and the RoK, saying their trade link reached its peak last year.
Welcoming the RoK’s application for the CPTPPmembership, Khanh expressed his hope that Vietnam and the RoK will continuetheir cooperation in relevant areas.
The two sides also compared notes on the Indo-PacificEconomic Framework (IPEF) which the US is stepping up in an effort to enhance comprehensiveeconomic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.
They held that relations within the IPEF should baseon open, transparent and inclusive standards, and cooperation acceptable to many countries in the region.
Launched in December 2018, the CPTPP was signed by 11countries, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico,New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.
Its total trade volume hit 5.7 trillion USD as of2019, accounting for 15.2 percent of the total global trade value, according toa report by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade./.
VNA
