France committed to helping Viet Nam develop

17/01/2008 -- 11:52 AM

Ha Noi (VNA) – France is committed to helping Viet Nam develop and grow prosperous, said French Ambassador to Viet Nam Herve Bolot on January 16. The ambassador said France would make economic growth in Viet Nam a priority during its term as European Union president, adding that Viet Nam’s greatest impediment to greater investment was its cumbersome and ineffectual trade regulations. “In this context, it will be useful to hold dialogues with Viet Nam because it has singled out as the representative of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to negotiate trade deals with the EU, which is an important step towards publishing forward with the EU-ASEAN free-trade agreement,” he said. “Furthermore, as the representative of the EU in Viet Nam, we will oversee preparations for the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and Viet Nam, which is of significant importance to both sides,” said Bolot. The EU head in Viet Nam, Sean Doyle, said Europe was keen to press ahead the EU-Viet Nam agreement. “We hope to complete negotiations with Viet Nam by the end of this year. Viet Nam is growing so fast and it is so ambitious. We will complete negotiations when the country feels ready,” said Doyle. “It is more important to do things well than to do fast,” he added. “We expect to start the first round of negotiations of two in March. The whole process should take two years.” The French ambassador also stressed the importance of environmental protection and the need to diversify away from dependence on oil. Bolot said global warming would lead to rising sea levels that could have a devastating impact on the region. He said the EU’s 27 member states, together with Viet Nam and other regional partners, should develop energy policies to minimise reliance on oil and gas, which would become increasingly expensive as supplies were depleted. Bolot also said France would make cultural exchange a priority during its EU presidency and that 2008 had been proclaimed the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue. The ambassador added that as Slovenia had no diplomatic representation in Viet Nam , France would represent Slovenia during the eastern European country’s EU presidency in the first half of the year.-Enditem
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