Prime Minister meets WTO Director-General on 18th BRICS sidelines
VGP - Prime Minister Le Minh Hung had a meeting with Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on the sidelines of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi, India, on September 12.
Prime Minister Le Minh Hung (L) meets Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, New Delhi, India, September 12, 2026 - Photo: VGP
The Prime Minister reiterated that Viet Nam always actively and responsibly participates in the WTO's agenda, and supports the organization in promoting inclusive and balanced global trade for peace, cooperation, and development, while effectively responding to global challenges.
Viet Nam hopes that the WTO will continue to advance its reform process in the new circumstances, and expand its agenda to emerging areas such as digital trade, AI, green transition, climate change, and supply chain resilience, said Le.
The Prime Minister also urged the WTO to continue its projects and initiatives to assist Viet Nam in strengthening its capacity, providing specialized training in trade policy, offering legal advice on the settlement of international disputes, and facilitating trade so as to make effective use of international agreements and commitments and enhance competitiveness.
Okonjo-Iweala, for her part, congratulated Viet Nam on its highly impressive economic achievements, noting that the Southeast Asian nation's macroeconomic indicators in recent years have reflected the Government's strong capacity for macroeconomic management.
After nearly 20 years of WTO membership (2007–2027), Viet Nam stands as a prominent example of the success of the WTO and the rules-based multilateral trading system, she said, expressing her hope that Viet Nam would share its experience in development and international integration with other developing countries.
She welcomed Viet Nam's ratification of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies and its participation in the Multi-Party Interim Appeal Arbitration Arrangement (MPIA), emphasizing that these steps demonstrate the country's strong commitment and responsibility toward the multilateral trading system.
Viet Nam is on the right track via diversifying its markets, products, and supply chains, while also moving up to higher levels of the value chain, particularly in high-value products related to AI, semiconductors, and microprocessors, she noted.
The WTO Director-General affirmed that the organization would continue to accompany and support Viet Nam in its process of international economic integration, expecting that Viet Nam would support the WTO reform process as well as the WTO accession process of other countries./.