Viet Nam and US close to TPP pact
HA NOI (VNS)— President Truong Tan Sang and the Acting Trade Representative of the US, Ambassador Demetrios James Marantis said they believe Viet Nam and the US will soon reach an agreement on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).
At a meeting with the US acting trade representative in Ha Noi yesterday, Sang affirmed that the Vietnamese Party and Government would create conditions for the TPP negotiations to take place smoothly and achieve the desired outcomes.
He appreciated US support during the TPP negotiations and urged the US delegation to take time to study the specific investment, trade and labour conditions in Viet Nam in order to achieve consensus on many contents during the negotiations.
Viet Nam would do its best and at the same time hoped to receive technical assistance from the US for successful negotiations, laying the prerequisite to enhance the Viet Nam-US relations, Sang said.
According to the US Ambassador, there were many things the two countries needed to discuss in order to complete TPP negotiations this October.
He said the two sides should to try their best to narrow the differences in their viewpoints about the fields of goods, service and investment, adding that Viet Nam and the US should also have a mechanism to agree on standards in labour and environment and deal with any arising disputes.
He affirmed that the US was willing to provide technical assistance to help Viet Nam overcome difficulties in its integration process.
The same day, Deputy Prime Minister Vu Van Ninh received the US Trade Representative, agreed that the two sides had achieved important outcomes during the TPP negotiation process and would try their best to narrow differences in the up-coming rounds.
The US Ambassador said the TPP would create opportunities for the two countries and their partners to increase trade and export and create more jobs.
He noted the strong development in US-Viet Nam trade, with the US now being the largest export market of Viet Nam. Two way trade jumped from $2 billion in 2001 to $26 billion last year. — VNS