Europe says Vietnam ready for WTO
BRUSSELS - The European Union backs Vietnam's bid for swift accession to the World Trade Organization, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said Friday.
Vietnam meets all criteria for joining the WTO, Barroso said after a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Brussels.
"We support the early entry of Vietnam in the WTO," the commission chief said, adding that the EU was ready to assist the social and economic development of the Southeast Asian country.
The government in Hanoi hopes to join the WTO this year.
"The fact that some problems are happening in our economic relations is a sign that the relationship is expanding," Barroso said, referring to current quarrels over an EU shoe tariff plan.
The European Commission last week said it wants to slap tough anti-dumping fines on low-cost leather footwear from China and Vietnam - a move which Vietnam says is aimed at protecting uncompetitive manufacturers, not correcting unfair trade practices.
Barroso said that the EU not only wants to expand and strengthen economical relations with Vietnam, but was also hoping to upgrade political ties with Hanoi.
The commission chief urged the Vietnamese government "to engage in an active dialogue on topics of mutual concern" including illegal migration, money laundering and human trafficking.
"These are examples of issues linked to regional stability," Barroso said, adding: "I am happy that the prime minister agrees that human rights are of universal nature."
Barroso said that the EU welcomed the recent release of political prisoners in Vietnam. However, more progress in human rights issues was needed, he stressed.
"Vietnam will continue to open our door and to implement the policies of reform," Tan Dung said, adding that the EU would continue to be a "very special and important partner" for Vietnam and that European businesses were welcome in the country.
Communist Vietnam began moving towards a market economy in 1986.
Deutsche Presse Agentur - September 8, 2006.
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