EU and Vietnam Open Formal Trade Talks
By: Ainsley Brown
The European Union (EU) and Vietnam have now officially stated free trade talks after Karel De Gucht, the EU Trade Commissioner, met with the Vietnamese Prime Minister, Nguyen Tan Dung in Hanoi.
The talks come after the successful conclusion of the 2 year in the making deal signed with South Korea in October of last year. This deal along with the settlement of the long running Banana Wars and the provisional trade deals with Columbia and Peru that are to be finalized at an EU-Latin American summit in May represents a strategic shift in EU trade policy. In seeking out bilateral talks, the EU is clearly signaling its frustration and it unwillingness to wait for the long protracted and stalled multilateral Doha Round of trade talks in the World Trade Organization (WTO) to be rekindled.
The EU views the fast growing Vietnamese economy as one with consistent and continued growth potential – potential that has to be foster and leveraged to its advantage. Trade between the EU and Vietnam has grown at a rate of 12% from 2004 to 2008 with overall trade being worth €12 billion in 2008.
It will be interesting to see how the EU’s recent decision to continue duties on imports of Vietnamese shoes will affect the tone of the negotiations from the outset?
