Vietnam and the European Union (EU) began the ninth round of
negotiations for the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) in
Brussels on Sept. 10.
The Vietnamese
delegation to the negotiation is headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Bui
Thanh Son and the EU side is headed by James Moran, Director for Asia
in the European Commission’s Directorate General for External
Relations.
The two sides are expected to deal
with existing issues, including a provision regarding “common
principles”, especially in the economic sector, and other provisions
relating to cooperation in trade and investment, immigration, and
dealing with the aftermath of war, mine clearance and law.
The ninth negotiation round, to close on Sept. 13, took place on the
threshold of the eighth Asia-Europe Summit expected to open in early
October and in the context that Vietnam and the EU are preparing to mark
the 20 th anniversary of their diplomatic ties.
In the
spirit of cooperation and respect for each other’s position, the two
sides reached vital progress in the past eight negotiations with the aim
of ending the talks later this year.
Vietnam-EU PCA negotiations, following an EU request, started in early 2008./.
