Member of the European Parliament (EP) Geert Bourgeois has hailed the EP’s February 12 ratification of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), saying they aim at developing a mutually-beneficial partnership.
European Parliament's February 12 plenary session
Speaking to Vietnam News Agency correspondents in France, Bourgeois, a rapporteur of the Committee on International Trade on the EVFTA and the EVIPA, stressed that the documents are the most ambitious new-generation agreements the EU has signed with a developing country.
He described Vietnam as a rapidly developing and competitive economy and one of the most open economies in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The ratification of the EVFTA is an important step towards the final goal of establishing a free trade region between the EU and ASEAN, he stated, adding that the EVFTA, together with similar ones the EU has signed with Japan and Singapore, will tighten connectivity between the EU and Asia.
The two documents were signed in Hanoi on June 30 last year. They include intensive, extensive and comprehensive commitments covering the fields of economy, trade, investment and sustainable development issues.
At the EP’s plenary session in France, the EVIPA was passed with 407 votes for, 188 against and 53 abstentions; and the EVFTA, with 401, 192 and 40, respectively.
According to research conducted by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the two deals will help Vietnam increase its GDP by 4.6 percent and its exports to the EU by 42.7 percent by 2025. Meanwhile, the European Commission has projected the EU’s GDP will increase by 29.5 billion USD and its exports to Vietnam by 29 percent by 2035.-VNA
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