Then, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will pay a working visit to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union at the invitation of Prime Minister Charles Michel of Belgium and President of the European Commission (EC), Jean Claude Juncker.
Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung
|
Joining the delegation, there are: Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh; Chairman of the Commission of Science, Technology and Environment Phan Xuan Dung; Minister-Chairman of the Government Office Nguyen Van Be; Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Minh Quang; Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Cao Duc Phat; Minister of Justice Ha Hung Cuong; Deputy Minister of Public Security To Lam; Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Ngoc Ha; Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha; Deputy Head of the Steering Committee Vo Minh Chien; Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen The Phuong and assistant to the Prime Minister Bui Huy Hung.
21th Conference of the United Nations on Climate Change (COP21) is one of the largest global conference in 2015.
Vietnam's delegation led by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will attend the conference COP21 to strongly assert the commitment of the Government of Vietnam in joint efforts with the international community to cope with climate change, as well as to promote and strengthen cooperation with the countries, international organizations to seek international assistance for responding to climate change in Vietnam.
Viet Nam and the European Union set up diplomatic ties on November 11, 1900. The two sides signed the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement in June 2012. Viet Nam ratified the agreement in 2013 while 24 out of the 28 European countries have approved the deal. Both sides also completed negotiations on a free trade agreement on August 4 this year. Trade is one of the major pillars of the Viet Nam-EU relations. The EU is Viet Nam’s second biggest trade partner after China and second export market after the United States. The two-way trade rose to nearly US$37 billion last year from US$4.5 billion in 2001. The figure reached nearly US$31 billion in the first nine months of this year. In terms of investment, European investors have poured US$21.53 billion in Viet Nam, in which the Netherlands tops the list with 239 projects worth nearly US$6.7 billion, followed by France with 436 capitalized at US$3.4 billion.
Belgium is the 6th biggest European importer of Viet Nam after Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France and Spain. Viet Nam mainly exports footwear, garments, aquaculture, coffee and farm produce to the European market. Regarding investment, as of October this year, Belgian investors pledged to pour US$420 million in 59 projects, focusing on such fields as processing and manufacturing. Viet Nam is the only Asian country to receive development assistance from the Belgian Government with a total value of€66 million, mainly channeled to water supply, irrigation and waste treatment projects.
During the working visit to the Kingdom of Belgium and the European Union (EU), Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung is expected to meet with European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker, European Council President Donald Tusk, and European Parliament President Martin Schulz to discuss measures to beef up cooperation in priority areas like energy, green growth, and vocational training. The Vietnamese Government chief will also hold talks with his Belgian counterpart Charles Michel to seek ways to accelerate cooperation in economy, trade, investment, transport, and aviation.
