Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang speaks at the workshop. Photo: VNA

In her opening speech, Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang described the Vietnam-Netherlands relationship as dynamic, effective and practical cooperation, VietnamPlus said.

The two countries have become priority and important partners of each other through the establishment of a comprehensive partnership in 2019, with political trust increasingly consolidated. The Netherlands has become Vietnam's second largest trade partner in Europe and the biggest EU investor in Vietnam, she said.

According to the diplomat, the two countries established a strategic partnership on climate change response and water management in 2010, and a strategic partnership on sustainable agriculture and food security in 2014. They have rolled out specific and practical projects in the Mekong Delta. The bilateral relationship has expanded to national defense-security, transport and sci-tech, both at the central and local levels.

Dutch Ambassador to Vietnam Kees van Baar, for his part, expressed his wish to join with Vietnam in seizing opportunities of the next five decades, towards deepening collaboration in various fields, especially people-to-people exchange and sustainable development.

Participants in s group photo. Photo: VNA

About orientations to future cooperation, Hang said the two countries need to continue maintaining a solid political foundation through meetings at all levels and channels to facilitate cooperation in other areas.

Economy, trade and investment should remain an important pillar in the bilateral ties, she suggested, adding that both nations should take advantage of significant opportunities brought by legal frameworks such as the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

As they are seeing new opportunities and driving forces of cooperation in the circular economy and green growth, the diplomat proposed fully tapping Vietnam’s advantages and potential, with the support of the Netherlands, in institutional building, technology transfer and workforce training, towards sustainable development.

Providing information at the seminar, Le Thi Thanh Minh, Head of the Department of European-American Markets (Ministry of Industry and Trade) informed that in recent years, the Netherlands had consistently been one of Vietnam’s leading trading partners in the EU, according to Viet Nam News.

Economy, trade and investment should remain an important pillar in the bilateral ties. Photo: VNA

Currently, the Netherlands is Vietnam's sixth-largest export market globally and second in the EU (after Germany). Conversely, Vietnam is the second largest export market in ASEAN and 15th globally for the Netherlands.

Over the years, Vietnam has consistently been a net exporter to the Netherlands. Key export items to the Netherlands include phones, electronics, textiles, footwear, agricultural products, and seafood. Meanwhile, imports from the Netherlands consist of machinery, equipment, components, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and dairy products.

The Netherlands is also the largest investor from the EU in Vietnam and many Dutch products have been ever-present in the daily lives of Vietnamese, such as "Dutch Lady" milk, Heineken, Philips, and Unilever.

According to Tran Toan Thang, Head of the International Cooperation Department, Institute of Development Strategy (Ministry of Planning and Investment), most Dutch investment projects in Vietnam are of moderate and small scale but are carried out by large corporations and operate effectively.

Conversely, Vietnam currently has nine investment projects in the Netherlands, covering areas such as the import and distribution of telecommunications equipment, automobiles, components, provision of services related to electric vehicle batteries, e-commerce, food services, agricultural and aquatic product exports.

The prospects for cooperation are promising. According to Thang, the EU-Việt Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) presents many collaboration opportunities for Vietnam and the Netherlands./.

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