Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 20 December (BelTA) – The Vietnam-EAEU free trade agreement has given a boost to Belarus-Vietnam trade and economic cooperation, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to Belarus Le Anh noted at an event to sum up the Belarus-Vietnam interaction in 2017 in the House of Friendship on 20 December, BelTA informs.

Belarus-Vietnam trade (according to Vietnam’s statistics) reached $130 million in January-October 2017, up 25% from the same period a year prior, the diplomat said. Belarus’ and Vietnam’s exports totaled $81 million and $48 million, respectively. “As for industrial cooperation, both countries have been implementing the protocol on support for the assembly plant for MAZ trucks. A BelAZ maintenance center is expected to open in Vietnam soon. The establishment of a joint venture to produce milk from Belarusian raw material in Vietnam is also under consideration. The sides are discussing further participation of Belarusian specialists in the designing of metro stations in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City,” the ambassador stressed. Several Belarusian and Vietnamese corporations are carrying out joint projects.

There has been a positive momentum in tourism, too, the ambassador stated. The flow of foreign tourists to Vietnam has increased in recent years. The number of Belarusian visitors skyrocketed in 2015, after the launch of a 15-day visa-free program.

When speaking about long-term plans, Ambassador Le Anh pointed to the importance of reaching $500 million in bilateral trade. This task has been set at the highest level.

“To sum up the 2017 results, I would like to mention some remarkable achievements of Vietnam. For instance, Vietnam’s economy grew by 6.7% in 2017, the foreign currency reserves are standing at $50 billion. Vietnam successfully hosted such an important event as the APEC Summit 2017 which brought together 21 countries, including Russia, China, and the USA,” the diplomat highlighted.

Viktor Rybak, Head of the Department for Asia, Australia and Oceania of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also took part in the meeting in Minsk. Belarus and Vietnam need to take advantage of all the potential they have to boost bilateral cooperation, he said.