VN, UK announce conclusion of free trade agreement negotiations

From left to right: Deputy Foreign Minister To Anh Dung, Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry Tran Quoc Khanh, Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, UK Trade Secretary Elizabeth Truss, and UK Ambassador to Viet Nam Gareth Ward at the signing ceremony in Ha Noi on December 11, 2020. Photo: VGP

The Vietnamese official said that in order to ensure there would be no interruption to bilateral trade, the two sides began negotiations in August 2018. Based on the EU-Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), negotiations went through six official and five technical sessions between 2018 and 2020.

Viet Nam and the UK will work together on the official signing of the trade deal, bringing it into effect at the beginning of 2021 to serve the mutual interests of their businesses and peoples, Anh said.

He expressed his confidence that the UKVFTA will drive bilateral trade and investment and become a means for the two economies to overcome the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and propel robust trade ties.

For her part, Truss said the conclusion of negotiations is an important factor in ensuring the continuity of the dynamic and growing commercial relationship between the two countries.

She noted that the agreement also marks an important step forward in the context of the UK officially applying to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in early 2021.

Six joint statements between the two sides were approved at the signing ceremony.

The FTA will maintain the benefits for Viet Nam-UK commercial ties in the EVFTA. At the end of the tariff elimination roadmap, 99 percent of tariffs on goods traded between Viet Nam and the UK will be cut. This means that Viet Nam will save about 114 million pounds on exports to the UK, while the figure for the UK will be 36 million pounds. Trade of goods like garments and textiles, leather and footwear, and seafood will see no interruption, with commercial services like those in finance and e-commerce growing further./. VNA