London (VNA) – Building on the Vietnam-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, a working visit to the UK by a delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, led by Minister Trinh Viet Hung from August 27-29, has laid a foundation for long-term cooperation in agriculture, environment, climate change response and sustainable development.
At his meeting with Angela Eagle, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), Hung thanked the UK Government for its practical support to Vietnam in disaster response, environmental protection and sustainable development.
The two officials agreed that the potential for bilateral cooperation remains substantial, given the complementary strengths of the two sides. The UK has advantages in science and technology, governance and green standards, while Vietnam is a major producer of tropical agricultural products and an important gateway to the ASEAN region.
They signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in agriculture, environment, climate change adaptation and sustainable development, creating a comprehensive, long-term framework for bilateral collaboration.
Under the document, the two sides agreed to make effective use of the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), while coordinating to address technical barriers and facilitate greater market access for agricultural products from both countries.
In marine economy and fisheries, they will continue implementing projects on marine biodiversity conservation, sustainable fisheries development and climate change adaptation in coastal areas.
At a meeting with UK Special Representative for Climate Rachel Kyte, the Vietnamese minister called for a shift from individual assistance to large-scale, long-term cooperation programmes with tangible impacts, particularly in climate change adaptation and resilience, climate finance, agricultural emissions reduction, forest protection and restoration, the marine economy and nature-based solutions. Vietnam reaffirmed its priority of turning climate commitments into concrete action towards achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
Ahead of the 31st United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31), Vietnam and the UK agreed to strengthen coordination in several priority areas. Vietnam is finalising its third Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) for submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat and plans to launch the partnership for climate-smart and responsible agriculture-food and forestry value chains (P-CRAFT), seeking the UK's support for the initiative.
The Vietnamese delegation also met with representatives from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office’s International Forests Unit to further cooperation in forest protection and development.
Science, technology and high-quality human resources were another focus of the visit. Hung, together with Vietnamese Ambassador to the UK Do Minh Hung, held a meeting with Professor Susanna J. Dunachie, Director of the Nuffield Department of Medicine Centre for Global Health Research at the University of Oxford. Hung proposed stronger research cooperation in crop and livestock breeding and the application of artificial intelligence (AI), big data, remote sensing and sensor technologies to water, forest and marine resource management, as well as weather and disaster forecasting.
The visit resulted in an MoU between the ministry’s Department of International Cooperation and the National Centre for Water Resources Planning and Investigation (NAWAPI) and the University of Oxford, establishing a long-term framework for research, expert exchanges and knowledge sharing in water resource management and planning, climate change response and sustainable development.
The agreements reached during the visit are expected to translate the Vietnam-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership into practical cooperation across science and technology, agricultural trade, environmental protection, nature conservation, climate adaptation and sustainable development, with tangible results anticipated at COP31 and beyond./.
VNA
