3:26:37 PM | 7/8/2005
Vietnam and South Korea are conducting negotiations on the former's bid to join the World Trade Organization (WTO), according to the Vietnam Ministry of Trade.
The focus of the talks in Hanoi on April 13 and 14 are discussions on tariffs applicable to several major South Korea export items once Vietnam opens its market.
At the previous talks in Seoul, the two countries failed to reach an agreement on a wide range of issues due to the fact that South Korea put forward high requirements for Vietnam.
Vietnam proposed that the two sides become more flexible and focus on staples having relatively high export revenues. Vietnamese negotiators argued that once Vietnam completely opens its market, South Korean investors doing business in Vietnam would have opportunities to expand their operation in the country.
To date, South Korea has invested US$4.861 billion in 877 projects in Vietnam, ranking as the fourth biggest investor to the Southeast Asian country.
Vietnam now needs to finalize talks with 21 partners including South Korea in a bid to participate in the WTO later this year. It has only completed six bilateral deals including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, the European Union and Singapore.
Vietnamese
