HCMC – The European Union (EU) regards Vietnam as one of its leading partners in the region and key players in international relations both now and in the future, said Josep Borrell Fontelles, vice president of the European Commission (EC).
Vietnam’s State President To Lam yesterday, July 30, met with Josep Borrell Fontelles, vice president of the EC and the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, who is on a three-day official visit to Vietnam from July 29 to 31, at the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son.
At the meeting, President Lam affirmed that the EU is a very important partner of Vietnam. The EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), after four years of implementation, has provided new momentum for trade and investment, making Vietnam the EU’s largest trading partner among ASEAN countries.
The Vietnamese leader proposed that both sides continue to effectively implement the EU-Vietnam Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA), the EVFTA, as well as other agreements and cooperation mechanisms.
He also called upon the EU to encourage its remaining members to ratify the the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), lift the illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) yellow card on Vietnam’s seafood exports, continue to provide ODA loans for Vietnam, support Vietnam in effectively implementing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP); and enhance cooperation on cybersecurity, maritime security, disaster prevention, crisis management, and crime prevention.
The President affirmed that Vietnam is ready to act as a bridge for the EU to the region, including by strengthening the ASEAN-EU strategic partnership.
In response, Josep Borrell Fontelles said that the EU views Vietnam as a top partner in the region and one of the key players in current and future international relations.
He highly appreciated Vietnam’s foreign policy and its development goals of becoming a developed, high-income country by 2045 and achieving net zero by 2050.
He was confident that the Vietnam-EU relationship will continue to develop strongly and extensively, for the benefit of both sides.
Yesterday morning, he also met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son. He expressed the hope that this visit will initiate the process of upgrading the Vietnam-EU relationship and anticipated that both sides will make efforts, cooperate, and engage in discussions to advance the upgrade to a comprehensive strategic partnership in the near future.
