President of the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour Bui Van Cuong welcomed US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius
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The two sides exchanged the roadmap for Vietnam’s involvement in the world-largest free trade pact. The Ambassador said President Barack Obama supported the ratification of the deal. He expressed his belief that Vietnam will effectively implement its commitments under the TPP as it is doing for the World Trade Organisation.
With its role to protect the rights and interests of trade unionists, the VGCL is aiming to increase its membership, Cuong said. As a political-social organisation, the VGCL operates according to the Law on Trade Unions approved by the National Assembly, he noted.
The confederation will engage in the revision of regulations as stipulated in Chapter 13 of the law, he said. Ted Osius said the US Embassy is willing to provide technical assistance for the VGCL to improve negotiation skills to sign a collective labour agreement.
The TPP is a free trade agreement between 12 countries, namely Canada, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Australia, the US, Japan and Vietnam, which aims to remove tariff barriers for its members.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade was assigned to coordinate with the Ministry of Justice, the Government Office, and relevant ministries and sectors to acquire Cabinet members’ opinions to complete a statement ratifying the TPP.
The Ministry of Justice is responsible for working with relevant ministries, sectors and provincial People’s Committees to continue reviewing the legal system to ensure the execution of the agreement and propose specific legal adjustments in line with the TPP requirements, and then report to the Government at its regular meeting in December.
The TPP started out as P-4 with Chile , New Zealand, Singapore and Mexico. The US joined in September 2008 and Vietnam in early 2009. The deal now brings together 12 countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam.
The completion of the world’s largest free trade pact on October 5 in Atlanta , the US, elicited positive responses from many countries. After the signing, the document must receive approval from member countries’ governments and parliaments before taking effect.
The TPP will become a free trade region of 800 million people, accounting for 30 percent of global trade and about 40 percent of the world’s economy. The pact will help expand Vietnam's GDP by 23.5 billion USD by 2020 and 33.5 billion USD by 2025.
