Vietnam, UAE set to upgrade relations, sign comprehensive economic partnership agreement

The visit is of special significance, as this is the first time a Vietnamese Prime Minister has officially visited the UAE over the past 15 years.

According to Vietnamese Ambassador to the UAE Nguyen Thanh Diep, the Vietnamese cabinet leader’s official visit to the UAE will contribute to consolidating political trust, elevating relations, especially attracting UAE investment to Vietnam and creating a breakthrough for Vietnamese goods and services to access the Gulf market.

During the visit, the two sides will have major activities such as upgrading their relations; strengthening cooperation at international and regional forums and organizations, signing the Vietnam - UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), and organizing a business forum.

This is addition to creating breakthroughs in economic, trade and investment relations between the two countries; intensifying people-to-people exchange, stepping up cooperation in security, education, labor, climate change and the environment and other fields; and accelerating the signing of cooperation documents to consolidate the legal framework for bilateral cooperation.

With the upgrading of relations and the signing of the CEPA within the framework of the visit, in the coming time, relations in the fields of politics, economics, trade, investment, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchange will continue to see strong development.

In particular, the signing of the CEPA, the first free trade agreement that Vietnam has negotiated with an Arab country in the Middle East - Africa region, will open up great prospects, a new phase of common strategic cooperation across multiple fields between Vietnam and the UAE.

The Agreement will serve a legal basis, creating a new platform to further bolster general economic cooperation between the two countries, through reducing or eliminating tariffs on many types of goods and services.  This will help increase market access, promote FDI flows and create new opportunities in a number of important areas for the business communities of both countries.

It is forecast that cooperation in trade, investment, economy, industry, energy, logistics, agriculture and infrastructure, high technology, digital transformation, green transformation, innovation, labor cooperation, tourism, will be further promoted when the CEPA process is performed, Diep went on to say.

Upgrading relations plays a very important role for the UAE in expanding cooperation and investment in areas of interest to the Middle East nation such as high technology, clean energy, artificial intelligence, computing technology, semiconductors, while creating opportunities for major corporations of Vietnam such as FPT, Viettel, and Vingroup, the  Vietnamese ambassador emphasized.

With trade and investment, it is essential for the two nations to develop the Halal market, provide support for businesses that produce and export Halal products, and assist Vietnamese goods to join the UAE and the region’s supply chains to meet Muslim visitors’ demand, he said, suggesting Vietnamese businesses focus on products boasting competitive edges and meeting UAE consumers’ taste.

He recommended the establishment of a Vietnamese business association in the UAE which will provide information and consultations for enterprises to minimize trade disputes and fraud.

A join working group should be set up to share information and connect potential projects and partners between the two sides as well as promote UAE investment in areas of Vietnam’s strengths like renewable energy, oil and gas, logistics, real estate, energy and industrial infrastructure, and industrial waste treatment, he added.