Vietnam Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung decided June 11 to empower the Trade Ministry to sign the bilateral trade and investment framework agreement (TIFA) with the US government, state media said.
The accurate date to ink the agreement, however, was not announced. Vietnam and the US concluded negotiations on TIFA June 7.
The TIFA, which helps resolve trade disputes and expand trade and investment relations between the US and Vietnam, is seen as a preparatory step toward the signing of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the two nations.
The TIFA will also be a mechanism for both sides to supervise the implementation of WTO commitments and the Vietnam-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA).
According to an announcement of Foreign Ministry June 11, Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet and his wife will pay an official visit to the US from June 18-23, at the invitation of their counterparts.
This will be the first visit by a Vietnamese head of state to the US since the two former foes established diplomatic ties in 1995.
Triet and G. Bush will discuss matters of mutual concern such as development issues, economic, trade, educational and cultural cooperation, and measures to solve existing problems including healing war wounds in the White House Jun 22.
Accompanied by dozens of big firms, President is scheduled to visit the three big US cities of New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles.
Although the US has many times criticized Vietnam’s human rights record, the relationship between the two countries has grown closer in recent years.
Vietnam and the US already signed a bilateral trade agreement, a scientific and technological cooperative agreement, an aviation pact, and a garment deal.
The US approved the permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) with Vietnam on December 9, 2006, marking full normalization of trade ties with its former enemy. Washington also took Vietnam off the list of countries of special concern over religious freedom the end of last year.
The bilateral trade is expected to rise to US$15 billion in 2010 from around US$9.7 billion last year. (Government’s Website)
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