Vietnam has requested South Africa's support in promoting FTA negotiations with the Southern African Customs Union.

VTV.vn - On the afternoon of October 22, at the Government Headquarters, Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son received South African Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ronald Lamola.

Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son receives South African Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Ronald Lamola - Photo: VGP

During the meeting, the Deputy Prime Minister welcomed Minister Ronald Lamola, who was accompanying South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on a state visit to Vietnam. He emphasized that this was the first visit by a South African President to Vietnam in nearly 20 years and expressed confidence that the visit would create new momentum to promote breakthrough development in bilateral relations in the coming years.

The Deputy Prime Minister assessed that, in recent times, relations between the two countries have continued to develop stably, with political relations being strengthened through high-level contacts and delegation exchanges. South Africa is currently Vietnam's largest trading partner and export market in Africa, with bilateral trade reaching US$1.8 billion in 2024.

The Deputy Prime Minister expressed confidence that, within the framework of President Cyril Ramaphosa's visit to Vietnam, the two sides would discuss and agree on major directions and measures to upgrade bilateral relations to a new level; expanding cooperation in priority areas such as mining, metallurgy, renewable energy, textiles, fertilizers, processed foods, supporting industries, education and training, and agriculture – a traditional and effective area of ​​cooperation between the two countries.

The Deputy Prime Minister requested South Africa's support and close cooperation with Vietnam in promoting negotiations on a Free Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the Southern African Customs Union, contributing to the realization of the goal of increasing bilateral trade to US$2 billion.

The Deputy Prime Minister also highly appreciated South Africa's role and position in the African region, as well as its proactive role in multilateral forums; expressed his desire for the two sides to continue coordinating and supporting each other in multilateral forums; expressed confidence that South Africa will successfully host the G20 Summit in November, contributing to promoting global economic growth through further integration between developed and developing economies; and affirmed Vietnam's commitment to making a responsible and constructive contribution to the overall success of this conference.

South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola expressed his pleasure at visiting Vietnam for the first time, admiring the will and aspirations of the Vietnamese people for national independence and the country's development achievements in recent years.

Minister Ronald Lamola stated that the President of South Africa highly appreciates Vietnam's role and position in the region and internationally, and affirmed his anticipation of the historic visit to Vietnam to exchange views and agree on concrete measures with senior Vietnamese leaders to upgrade bilateral relations to a new level.

Appreciating the proposals of Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son, Minister Ronald Lamola stated that, based on the foundation of good political relations and shared similarities, the two countries have much potential for cooperation, especially in the fields of economics, trade, investment, education and training.

Minister Ronald Lamola also highly appreciated Vietnam's hosting of the signing ceremony of the United Nations Convention against Cybercrime; affirming his readiness to cooperate with Vietnam in this important field.

Source: https://vtv.vn/viet-nam-de-nghi-nam-phi-ung-ho-thuc-day-dam-phan-fta-voi-lien-minh-thue-quan-mien-nam-chau-phi-100251022221623056.htm