Vietnam, Belgium foster cooperative ties

Hanoi, November 25 (VNA) - Vietnam appreciated multi-faceted cooperation with Belgium, particularly in economics, trade, investment, said Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung. During the third meeting of the Vietnam-Belgium Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation held in Brussels on November 23, the deputy minister expressed his hope for the further development of the bilateral relations. President of the Board of Directors of the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Dirk Achten hailed Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements Vietnam over the past years while emphasising some important elements to bilateral economic cooperation between the two countries. Recent visits by the two countries’ leaders, especial the trip by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in October last year, have contributed to strengthening bilateral ties, he said, adding that the upcoming Belgium visit by the PM is expected to deepen the relationship between Belgium and Vietnam. Achten spoke of Vietnam’s active activities such as the signing of free trade agreements (FTA) with many countries, including the to-be-signed FTA with the European Union, which is expected to boost bilateral trade between the two nations. During the meeting, two sides discussed on-going projects and proposed future cooperation plans. The Belgian side wished to promote beef and pear exports in tandem with investment in renewable energy in Vietnam. Meanwhile, Vietnam suggested Belgium continue assisting existing mechanisms such as green growth, research and consultancy fund while jointly working to determine new cooperation mechanisms. The two-way trade between Vietnam and Belgium posted at 2 billion USD in 2014. Belgium is Vietnam’s sixth largest trade partner in the EU. There are currently 59 Belgian-invested projects in Vietnam, mostly in hi-tech, logistics, food and beverage, worth a total of 420 million USD.-VNA