Push EU peers to ratify investment protection pact, Vietnamese PM urges Romania

Romania has already ratified the Europe-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and should urge other European nations to do so soon, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said Monday.

Chinh made the request while meeting his Romanian counterpart Ion-Marcel Ciolacu in Bucharest. He paid a three-day (January 20-22) visit to Romania ahead of the 75th anniversary of bilateral ties next year (1950-2025).

The European Union (EU) and Vietnam signed the Europe-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and EVIPA in June 2019. While the EVFTA entered into force in August 2020, the EVIPA has to be ratified by all EU members. As of October 2023, 16 of 27 EU members had ratified it.

The two PMs agreed to boost trade and investment cooperation and bring it on par with bilateral political partnership. They said businesses would be encouraged to further utilize the EVFTA.

PM Chinh said Vietnam was willing to act as a gateway for Romanian goods to enter Vietnam and the ASEAN market.

For his part, Ciolacu said more and more Romanian businesses have shown interest in investing in Vietnam as a market with best potential in the Asia-Pacific region.

He also called on businesses of both countries to enhance cooperation and make Romania a gateway for Vietnamese goods to enter Europe. Romania is set to join the Schengen zone in March this year.

During Chinh’s visit, ministries and local authorities of both countries signed 19 agreements.

Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and Romania’s Ministry of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism signed an agreement on facilitating business in export-import, food processing, e-commerce and renewable energy sectors.

Other agreements included one on cooperation in labor, social welfare and cultural exchanges between Vietnam’s Ninh Binh province and Romanian’s Timis province.

Top universities and academies of the two nations signed 15 agreements.