The EU and Vietnam are set to
begin negotiations on a bilateral free trade agreement, officials announced on
31 March, making Vietnam the third country of the ten-member Association of
Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to hold trade talks with Brussels.
“Today’s decision marks a
clear desire to deepen relations and improve the business environment between
the EU and Vietnam. The countries are complementary economies with much to gain
from ever closer co-operation,” said EU Trade Commissioner Karel
De Gucht.
“The EU is committed to
increasing its engagement with dynamic Asian emerging markets to boost trade
and growth.”
The two sides are aiming to
include import tariffs elimination, trade in services, non-tariff barriers to
trade, intellectual property rights, and competition in a potential pact,
officials said after meeting in Phnom Penh, Cambodia last week.
In 2011, EU-Vietnam trade in
goods was worth over €18 billion, with almost €13 billion in exports from
Vietnam to the EU. Vietnam’s key export items include footwear, textiles,
coffee, leather, and furniture.
Vietnam is the EU’s fifth
largest trading partner within ASEAN, while the EU is Vietnam’s third largest
overall trading partner after China and the US.
The European Commission is
scheduled to hold consultations with EU member states in the coming weeks prior
to launching bilateral negotiations with Hanoi.
Brussels hones in on ASEAN
trade relations
Brussels had previously
attempted to clinch a deal with the entire ASEAN regional bloc. But when talks
ultimately stalled, the 27-country EU bloc moved toward pursuing individual
pacts with ASEAN members, launching trade talks with both Singapore and
Malaysia in 2010.
The EU and Singapore are
reportedly in the “final stages” of negotiations on a free trade pact, EU
ambassador and head of delegation for the city state Marc Ungeheuer
said last week.
Brussels says it hopes to
create a network of similar, complementary trade pacts across Southeast Asia,
in order to pave the way for future ASEAN-EU region-to-region talks.
Currently, the EU accounts for
10 percent of ASEAN’s total trade, with trade in goods increasing 26.6 per cent
since 2006 to €161.7 billion in 2011.