Second Viet Nam-Australia Trade Ministers' Dialogue held in Melbourne

The two ministers discussed initiatives to further deepen the bilateral economic cooperation within the framework of the Viet Nam–Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

A number of measures were proposed to strengthen ties in priority areas of trade, including agriculture, education, tourism, trade promotion, and opportunities to boost business activities in each other's markets.

The two sides welcomed the progress in opening their markets for exports, including Vietnamese grapefruits and Australian blueberries, and agreed to promote market access for other agricultural products.

Both sides emphasized the need for maintaining sustainable mineral supply chains, supporting each country's climate and energy transition goals and leveraging significant potential to enhance investment cooperation in energy and critical minerals.

The two ministers recognized the importance of digital trade rules and expressed their wish to foster stronger ties in digital transformation and economy.

The ministers reaffirmed their strong support for a rules-based trading system led by the WTO and agreed to continue building positive momentum to support ambitious WTO reforms and rule-making ahead of, and beyond, the WTO's 14th Ministerial Conference in 2026.

Australia welcomes Viet Nam's chairmanship of APEC in 2027 and vows to cooperate closely to ensure the success of the event.

Following the dialogue, a joint statement was issued.

Currently, Australia is Viet Nam's tenth-largest trading partner, while Viet Nam ranks 10th among Australia's major partners./.