Striving to soon bring trade turnover to 7 billion USD

The Prime Minister asked the Belgian Senate to push for the Belgian Federal Parliament to soon ratify the EVIPA Agreement to create a favorable investment environment for businesses of the two countries.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose. (Source: VNA)

On the afternoon of August 21, at the Government headquarters, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose, who is visiting Vietnam from August 21-25 at the invitation of National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue.

Welcoming President Stéphanie D'Hose's visit to Vietnam and recalling the good impressions of her visit to Belgium, including the meeting between the Prime Minister and the President, the Prime Minister said that the President's visit to Vietnam is of great significance in the context of the two countries celebrating the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations and the 5th anniversary of the strategic partnership on agriculture.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said that the Vietnamese Government attaches great importance to strengthening increasingly deep, substantive and effective relations with the Kingdom of Belgium - a founding member and an important voice in the European Union.

Assessing the bilateral relationship in recent times, the Prime Minister said that Belgium has always been among Vietnam's leading trade partners in the EU and Vietnam is Belgium's largest trade partner in ASEAN. In 2022, two-way trade will reach 4.73 billion USD.

The Prime Minister was pleased to see new developments in cooperation between the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Belgian Parliament; he believed that close and effective cooperation between the two legislative bodies would make an important contribution to the development of Vietnam-Belgium relations.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the meeting. (Source: VNA)

President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose expressed her appreciation for the warm sentiments and the warm welcome that Vietnam in general and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in particular have given to Belgium and her personally; said that during this visit, she hopes that the Belgian Parliament and the Vietnamese National Assembly will have a higher cooperation mechanism, contributing to promoting the friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries, including considering removing trade barriers, promoting cooperation in the fields of technology and innovation; and hopes that Vietnam will have a visa policy, creating more favorable conditions for Belgian citizens and businesses to enter Vietnam.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said that from August 15, Vietnam will officially exempt 45-day visas for citizens of some countries to enter Vietnam under the visa exemption regime; Vietnam acknowledges Belgium's request and will continue to promote this issue.

To enhance political trust and expand and deepen cooperation between the two countries in the coming time, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh suggested that the two sides continue to increase delegation exchanges at all levels, especially high-level ones; closely coordinate at multilateral and international forums, especially on issues of mutual concern such as conflict prevention, peacekeeping, climate change, etc.

President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose speaks. (Source: VNA)

The Prime Minister said that the two sides should make the most of the advantages of the Vietnam-EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), striving to bring trade turnover to 7 billion USD in the next 2-3 years, and asked Belgium to continue creating conditions for Vietnamese seafood and traditional agricultural products, such as rice, coffee and seasonal agricultural products, to enter the Belgian and EU markets.

The Prime Minister also asked the Belgian Senate to push for the Belgian Federal Parliament to soon ratify the Vietnam-EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) to create a favorable investment environment for businesses of the two countries; support and urge the European Commission (EC) to soon remove the EC's IUU yellow card warning for Vietnamese seafood products.

Appreciating Belgium's ODA provision to Vietnam, the Prime Minister suggested that the two sides continue to cooperate in key areas such as clean agriculture, renewable energy, digital economy, green economy, and circular economy; requesting Belgium to support Vietnam in developing circular agriculture, smart agriculture, and implementing the National Strategy on Green Growth for the 2021-2030 period towards sustainable, environmentally friendly development, and adaptation to climate change; and study the establishment of a tripartite cooperation mechanism between Vietnam, Belgium, and African partners to respond to food security issues.

As one of the countries most affected by climate change, Vietnam asked Belgium to increase support in resources, finance, institutional building and human resource training to implement commitments at COP26, and at the same time have specific projects to help Vietnam respond to climate change, especially in the Mekong Delta region in green development and combating saltwater intrusion.

The Prime Minister thanked and requested the Belgian Government and Senate to continue to pay attention and create favorable conditions for Vietnamese citizens to live, work and study stably in Belgium, contributing to promoting the role of a bridge between the two countries; requested the Belgian side to consider increasing the number of postgraduate training scholarships for Vietnam, especially in areas where Belgium has strengths such as transport infrastructure, environment, tourism, etc.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh meets with President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose. (Source: VNA)

Agreeing with the Prime Minister's opinion, President of the Belgian Senate Stéphanie D'Hose expressed her impression of Vietnam's socio-economic development achievements and its role and position in the international arena, and said that the two sides need to continue expanding exchanges and dialogues at all levels in all fields, especially increasing the exchange of high-level delegations to expand and deepen the Vietnam-Belgium relationship.

President of the Senate Stéphanie D'Hose said that the Belgian Federal Parliament is actively implementing steps, striving to ratify the EVIPA before June 9, 2024 when Belgium ends its term as President of the Council of the European Union; ready to support Vietnam in energy transition, agricultural development, overcoming the consequences of toxic chemicals/dioxin, etc.

The two sides discussed regional and international issues of mutual concern; shared the difficulties and losses caused by the war. The Prime Minister asked Belgium to support the stance and viewpoint of ASEAN and Vietnam on the East Sea issue, including ensuring safety and freedom of navigation and aviation; peacefully resolving disputes in accordance with international law, especially the 1982 UNCLOS; and supporting the negotiation process and building an effective and efficient COC.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/viet-nam-vuong-quoc-bi-phan-dau-dua-kim-ngach-thuong-mai-som-dat-7-ty-usd-239152.html