Trade cooperation – momentum of Vietnam-US ties

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – The relations between Vietnamand the US would continue to grow stably in the time ahead, with economic andtrade cooperation the centre and key momentum of the bilateral ties, Vietnamese and US officials said.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade DoThang Hai, also Vice Chairman of the Vietnam-US Trade and Investment FrameworkAgreement (TIFA) Council, and Dawn Shackleford, Assistant US TradeRepresentative (USTR) for the Office of Southeast Asia and the Pacific sharedthe view during their working session in Hanoi on November 4.

Hai said Vietnam always considers the US a leadingimportant partner and wishes that the economic and trade ties will developstably and sustainably, and serves as a pillar of the Vietnam-US comprehensive relationship.

The deputy minister highlighted joint efforts in rollingout an action plan towards harmonious and sustainable trade with strongmeasures, contributing to building strategic trust between the two nations

Vietnam supports fair trade and has no intention toimpose any measures that would cause discrimination, put burden on tradeactivities, or harm the production and labourers in the US, he affirmed.

The Vietnamese Government will continue to cooperatewith US partners to address issues of shared concern in a comprehensive manner,thus maintaining the stable trade ties, towards harmonious, sustainable andmutually beneficial trade balance, Hai pledged.

As Vice Chairman of the TIFA Council, Hai called on theUS to issue objective and fair assessments in line with WTO rules duringinvestigations into trade remedies.  

He welcomed the US’s recommendations on Vietnam’s legalframework, which he said helped to create an open business environment and bring benefits toboth sides.

Dawn Shackleford, Assistant US Trade Representative (USTR) for the Office of Southeast Asia and the Pacific (Photo: VNA)

For her part, Shackleford highly valued the Ministryof Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s views on fair trade and acknowledged results of substantive,effective policy dialogues between the two countries over the past time.

She said issues relating to economy, trade and rightsof labourers will be priorities under President Joe Biden's administration, andthe USTR will continue to hold working programmes with Vietnamese ministries andagencies within the dialogue framework of the TIFA.

According to the European-American Market Departmentunder the MoIT, Vietnam’s export value to the US expanded 230 percent over the pastfive years, while the US’s export to the Southeast Asian nation increased morethan 175 percent.

At the Tien Thuan garment company limited in Ninh Thuan province, which produces apparel for export to the US (Photo: VNA))

The US has become Vietnam’s biggest buyer and Vietnamis also the US’s 10th biggest trade partner.

Statistics by the General Department of VietnamCustoms show that this year to September, the two-way trade reached 80.6 billionUSD and the figure is expected to hit 100 billion USD this year./.

VNA