Viet Nam should give first priority to implementing and utilising opportunities from free trade agreements (FTA) in the new phase of international economic integration, particularly the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), the EU-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and other ASEAN’s FTAs with its partners.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh speaking at the meeting. (Photo: VGP)

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, who is also head of the Inter-sectoral Steering Committee for International Economic Integration, made the statement while chairing a meeting of the committee to review Viet Nam’s international economic integration in recent years.

The meeting reported that despite unprecedented developments in the region and the world, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic, Viet Nam has continued to effectively implement international economic integration with significant results.

The highlight of the achievements includes the signing and implementation of CPTPP, the ratification of EVFTA, the effective implementation of ASEAN Chairmanship 2020, and the active participation in multilateral mechanisms such as United Nations, the World Trade Organisation (WTO), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (APEC) and others.

With 16 FTAs under implementation or negotiation, Viet Nam has become a focal point of a vast free trade area network, contributing to increasing Viet Nam’s interests with most of leading partners in the region and the world.

According to the Deputy PM, international economic integration in the coming time should pursue the highest goal of serving economic recovery and promoting growth and sustainable development.

Source: NDO