| European Council gets nod to FTA negotiations with Vietnam | |
The Council of the European Union on May 31 authorised the European Commission to begin negotiations of a free trade agreement (FTA) with Vietnam. In a press release, the Council says Vietnam is the third member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), after Singapore and Malaysia, to enter into FTA negotiations with the European Union. Rounds of negotiations will take place very shortly. In 2007 the Council agreed to kick-start negotiations of a region-to-region FTA with ASEAN member countries, however, the negotiation process was put on hold in 2009. In December 2009, it decided to resume bilateral negotiations with ASEAN countries, while pursuing a strategic objective of a regional FTA with ASEAN. | |
| VBN |
