VN, EU Kick off FTA Negotiations
Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh and Chief Negotiator of the European Union (EU) Mauro Petriccione on October 8 in Ha Noi started negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and the EU.
The negotiations drew the participation of 60 Vietnamese and EU experts.
Vietnam is the third ASEAN member to talk FTA with the EU.
So far, Vietnam is the EU’s fifth trade partner in ASEAN with the union is Vietnam’s third trade partner.
The EU is the largest importer of Vietnam in the world with an import turnover of €12.8 billion in 2011. EU's exports to Vietnam fetched US$5.2 billion (over €4 billion) last year.
EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said that the negotiation process will take long time. However, he said he hopes it will be completed before his working tenure finishes in October 2014.
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