Italy hopes to become Viet Nam's leading agricultural partner in EU: Italian agriculture minister

At the meeting, Lollobrigida affirmed Italy's readiness to share experience, technology, crop varieties and livestock achievements with Viet Nam to develop sustainable agriculture with lower emissions and more added values targeting premium markets.

He expressed his belief that more Italian agricultural products would be present in Viet Nam and the Asia-Pacific, adding that Italy will actively urge relevant EU agencies to remove the yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood at the earliest.

Prime Minister Pham reiterated that Viet Nam treasures and expects to strengthen its strategic partnership with Italy, welcoming the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry.

The Vietnamese leader urged both sides to effectively realize the MoU to achieve new milestones in agricultural cooperation, overcome challenges, and strive for a more balanced and mutually beneficial trade relationship.

The Prime Minister highlighted the need to promote collaboration in deep processing of agricultural products, technology transfer, innovation, digital transformation, green economy and circular economy in agriculture, and to foster connections between businesses to develop agricultural economy.

Viet Nam is the first country to carry out the one-million-ha low-emission, high-quality rice program in the Mekong Delta, contributing to the global climate change adaptation, he said.

He also urged Italy to accelerate the European Union's removal of the yellow card warning on Vietnamese seafood exports and early ratify the EU-Viet Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

The Prime Minister suggested both nations continue joining hands in addressing global challenges such as climate change, food security and water security.

He also called for the effective implementation of cooperation activities within the framework of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) Declaration between Viet Nam and G7 countries.

Viet Nam is willing to work as a bridge to foster the development partnership between Italy and ASEAN, as well as promote relations between Italy and African countries and other nations through the tripartite cooperation model in ensuring food security, he stated.

Italy is now the third largest trade partner of Viet Nam in the EU while Viet Nam is Italy's biggest trade partner in ASEAN, with two-way trade surpassing US$6 billion in 2023, the host and the guest noted.

In 2023, the two countries celebrated the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations and the 10th anniversary of strategic partnership./.