Vietnam - Belgium exchange Memorandum of Understanding on trade promotion

Vietnam wishes to strengthen multifaceted cooperation with Belgium

On the morning of April 1, at the Presidential Palace,President Luong Cuong and his wife presided over the welcoming ceremony for Belgian King Philippe and Queen Mathilde during their State visit to Vietnam.

This is the first State visit after more than 50 years of establishing diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Belgium, especially in the context of Vietnam entering a new era; an important historical milestone, bringing the relationship between the two countries into a new stage of development, with higher political trust, and more substantial and effective cooperation.

Attending the talks between President Luong Cuong and King Philippe of Belgium were Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc; Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Vu Hong Thanh; Head of the Office of the President Le Khanh Hai; Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung; Minister of Agriculture and Environment Do Duc Duy.

Panorama of President Luong Cuong meeting with King Philippe of Belgium. Photo: Dan Tri

At the meeting, President Luong Cuong warmly welcomed the Belgian King Philippe and the high-ranking delegation of the Kingdom of Belgium to pay their first State visit to Vietnam since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1973; affirming that the visit is an important historical milestone, opening a new page for the friendly relations between the two countries.

The President affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to and wishes to strengthen multi-faceted cooperation with Belgium, a member country with an important role and voice in the EU; expressed his appreciation for the valuable support of the Belgian people for Vietnam in the past struggle for national independence, as well as the good feelings and contributions of the King and Queen of Belgium personally to the country and people of Vietnam and the bilateral relationship in recent times.

The two sides pledged to continue effectively implementing existing bilateral cooperation mechanisms and studying the development of new cooperation mechanisms to deepen specialized cooperation between the two countries; closely coordinate and support each other at international forums and organizations such as the ASEAN-EU framework, Francophone, the United Nations, especially at the United Nations Human Rights Council when both countries are members for the 2023-2025 term...

Important milestone in trade promotion cooperation

Immediately after the talks, the two leaders witnessed the handover ceremony of cooperation documents between Vietnam and Belgium in many important fields such as culture, trade, climate change, and support for victims of Agent Orange.

President Luong Cuong and King Philippe of Belgium witnessed Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, Minister and President of the Brussels Capital Region Rudi Vervoort, Minister and President of the Walloon Region Adrien Dolimont and Minister of the Flemish Region in charge of Brussels and the Belgian Press Cieltje Van Achter exchanging the Memorandum of Understanding between the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and the Flanders Investment and Trade Agency, the Walloon Export Investment Promotion Agency and the Brussels Business Support Agency. Photo: An Dang/VNA

Accordingly, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Minister-President of the Brussels Capital Region Rudi Vervoort; Minister-President of the Walloon Region Adrien Dolimont; Minister of the Flanders Region in charge of Brussels and the Press Cieltje Van Achter exchanged the document "Memorandum of Understanding between the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency and the Flanders Investment and Trade Agency and the Walloon Investment and Export Promotion Agency and the Brussels Business Support Agency" under the witness of President Luong Cuong and King Philippe of Belgium.

The signing of the Memorandum of Understanding between the trade promotion agencies of the two countries marks an important milestone in building a sustainable cooperation mechanism.

According to the agreement in the Memorandum of Understanding, the two sides committed to promoting trade promotion activities in a professional manner, while strengthening cooperation between Vietnam and Belgium to develop economic and trade relations between the two countries. This is considered a strategic step to realize the goal of increasing bilateral trade turnover in the coming time.

The Memorandum of Understanding sets out specific goals in enhancing information exchange and coordinating the organization of trade promotion events, helping businesses of the two countries expand their markets and seek strategic partners.

At the same time, the two sides pledged to support businesses to participate in fairs, exhibitions, research, training and experience exchange activities. In particular, the two sides agreed to support women-owned businesses to promote gender equality in international business.

President Luong Cuong thanked Belgium for passing the Belgian National Assembly’s Resolution on supporting Vietnamese Agent Orange victims; emphasized the important significance of this Resolution for Vietnam and suggested that the two countries actively implement the Resolution in the coming time, contributing to raising the international community’s awareness of the consequences of Agent Orange in Vietnam.

Regarding economy and trade, an important pillar in Vietnam - Belgium relations, the two leaders agreed to continue to effectively implement the Vietnam - EU Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA). President Luong Cuong proposed that Belgium soon ratify the Vietnam - EU Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), in order to promote equal and mutually beneficial investment relations between businesses of the two countries; Belgian businesses should increase investment in Vietnam, especially in areas where Belgium has strengths such as high technology, renewable energy, digital transformation, and strategic infrastructure; and suggested that Belgium have a voice so that the European Commission (EC) can soon remove the IUU "yellow card" on Vietnam's seafood exports.

Belgian King Philippe wants Belgian businesses in the fields of wastewater treatment, energy, rare mineral exploitation... to participate in investment and business activities in Vietnam.

Thanh Binh

Source: https://congthuong.vn/viet-nam-bi-trao-doi-bien-ban-ghi-nho-xuc-tien-thuong-mai-381027.html