Facilitating Vietnam-Russia Businesses

According to Dr Vu Tien Loc, VCCI President, attending the dialogue are representatives of the Vietnam's leading economic groups having potential cooperation with Russia such as PetroVietnam, Vinatex, Vinacomin, Vietnam Airlines Corporation, Vietnam Electricity Group, Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV), Vietnam Russia Bank and the leading Russian companies including Zarubezhneft Company, Company "Bank VTB", GeoProMining Group, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft Company, and Eastern Energy Company and so on.

 

Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai reviewed that this is a good opportunity for the 2 countries’ businesses to meet, exchange, and foster investment cooperation.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai, trade and economic relations between Vietnam and Russia have made significant strides. In 2011, the bilateral trade turnover of Vietnam-Russia reached nearly US$2 billion; in 2012 about US$3 billion and it is aimed to achieve the target of US$7 billion in 2015.

 

Vietnam's exports to Russia accounted for only 0.5 percent of Russia's total imports, indicating the huge size of the Russian market. Imports from Russia accounted for only 0.7 percent of the total import turnover of Vietnam. The results do not match the potential and strengths of each country. The two Governments should have policies to attract investment for further cooperation, strengthen exchanges and promotion to transform the opportunities and major potential of the two markets into reality, said Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai.

 

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkadiy V.Dvorkovich said: the Government of the Russian Federation welcomes, encourages and is ready to create favorable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to seek business opportunities for cooperation and investment in Russia. Over the years, Russian business has been operating very effectively in cooperation with Vietnamese enterprises in some sectors such as oil and gas, nuclear energy, and mechanical. In three years, the major challenging goal of raising more than double the current export requires the two sides to promote trade and investment. Mr Arkadiy V.Dvorkovich also said the Russian banking system can support promoting trade and investment between the two countries.

 

At the dialogue, Vietnamese enterprises suggested Russia consider creating more favorable conditions for enterprises engaged in textiles, footwear, furniture, seafood, electronics ...to enter the Far East and some other major cities of the Russian Federation.

 

Mr Nguyen Canh Son – President of Eurowindow Holding, Chairman of the Association of Overseas Vietnamese Entrepreneurs, President of the Vietnam-Russia Business Council recommended the Russian government remove administrative procedures and make tariff barriers more open. Mr Son also wants the two governments to consider using the currency of the two countries as a means of payment, not through the 3rd currency.

 

Concerning the above proposal, Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich said the Government of Russia is gradually abolished the administrative procedures and has established a roadmap to improve the business environment. For the field of monetary payment, the Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich said that the central banks of the two countries should work together to agree the terms of payment.

 

In the dialogue, PetroVietnam representative also reported a number of oil and gas joint venture operations between the two countries with very positive results, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich said Russia attaches great importance to promoting cooperation with Vietnam in oil and gas and energy sector. "The Government of the Russian Federation will create favorable conditions for the Vietnam Oil and Gas businesses to involve in the projects in the Russian Federation. Russia has not allowed any foreign partners to engage in the project like this. This is a very special incentive for Vietnamese businesses," said Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich.

 

The Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich also said he would soon consider the proposal of PetroVietnam tax incentives for projects PetroVietnam are made in the East of Russia.

 

At the meeting, representatives of the two sides’ business circles expressed interest in negotiating the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Vietnam and Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. According to the Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade of Vietnam Le Duong Quang, Vietnam and Russia are expected to start negotiations on FTA in early 2013 and strive to conclude negotiations within two years. The Governments of Vietnam and Russia have decided to set up high-level joint working group to promote the priority investment projects in Vietnam and Russia headed by the two Ministers of Industry and Trade.

 

According to the Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia Yury B.Slyusar, after FTA is signed, it is expected that Vietnam's exports to Russia will increase to 6 times, the items of Vietnam will be exempted from tax completely or lowered to a minimum.