Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) delegation at the Government Headquarters on March 22.

The attendees were leaders of the Government Office and the ministries of Planning and Investment, Industry and Trade, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Transport, Information and Communication, Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, Culture – Sports and Tourism.

Also in attendance were the State Bank of Vietnam, the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council President and CEO Ted Osius, the U.S. Ambassador in Vietnam Marc E. Knapper.

The leaders of more than 50 leading enterprises in the U.S. and the world were there too, including AES, Netflix, Boeing, Apple, Coca-Cola, Pfizer, Abbott, Visa, Citibank, Meta, Ford, and FedEx Express. 

The Prime Minister welcomed the USABC and the U.S. business delegation to Vietnam, and the delegation members joined a frank, sincere and effective working session with Vietnamese agencies.

This is a continuation of previous working sessions and exchanges between the Vietnamese Government, the Prime Minister, ministries, branches and localities and the USABC and the U.S. businesses to remove difficulties, overcome challenges and develop together.

The Prime Minister thanked the U.S. Government for supporting Vietnam in COVID-19 prevention and control. 

Thanks to USABC and the U.S. businesses for accompanying Vietnam in overcoming difficulties, recovering and developing during the past years; he said the Government of Vietnam is always open and ready to listen to the thoughts, aspirations and opinions of the U.S. business community.

The Prime Minister said that Vietnam considers the U.S. one of its most important partners and welcomes the U.S. to support a strong, independent, prosperous Vietnam. 

Vietnam wishes to promote the Vietnam-U.S. Comprehensive Partnership relation to becoming more substantive, stable, and intensive based on respect for independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and political institutions of each other.

The head of Government praised the production and business investment activities and high sense of responsibility of the U.S. business community in Vietnam, affirming that the Government is always open and ready to listen to the thoughts, aspirations and opinions of the U.S. business community.

The Prime Minister said that the Government always protects the legitimate rights and interests of investors and respects, encourages and is ready to create favourable conditions for this sector to develop in the long term, cooperate and compete healthily with other economic sectors in the spirit of “harmonious benefits, shared risks”.

The Representatives of the U.S.-ASEAN Business Council and U.S. businesses express their trust in Vietnam’s economic growth prospects, undertaking to place long-term investment in Vietnam, especially in the fields of green transformation, digital transformation, energy transformation, finance, manufacturing, automobile industry, entertainment industry, healthcare, life sciences, logistics, speeding up planning, and approving a few specific projects.

The U.S. businesses give the Government, ministries and branches of Vietnam a few suggestions to create more favourable conditions such as a legal framework on e-commerce; information network security and information accessibility; policy of tax; capital market reformation to promote investment; less cumbersome visa granting policy.

Energy continues to be the main topic of discussion with the goal of promoting the development of multi-billion U.S.-dollar energy projects in Vietnam.

A representative from AES Vietnam who joined the delegation said, “AES is the largest U.S. investor in Vietnam’s energy sector and plays active role in energy cooperation between the two countries, with our current projects Son My LNG terminal and Son My 2 power plant. Progress on these large- scale projects by AES and other member companies will help move Vietnam forward”.

After leaders of ministries and branches communicated and answered the comments and suggestions given by the USABC and the U.S. businesses, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh acknowledged the comments and answered suggestions given by the USABC and the U.S. businesses.

He also directed the ministries and branches of Vietnam to continue processing the issues according to the opinions and suggestions of the U.S. businesses, thereby continuing to promote economic cooperation, contributing to promoting Vietnam-U.S. Comprehensive Partnership relation become a substantive, effective, equal and mutually beneficial relationship.

The Prime Minister says that the Government of Vietnam continues to create favourable conditions for U.S. businesses to expand investment in Vietnam while creating conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to participate more deeply in the production value chain of the U.S. businesses.

He suggests that the two sides continue to discuss removing the barriers in production and business and improving the business investment environment.

The Prime Minister also informs about a few specific industries and fields that the USABC and the U.S. businesses are interested in, such as the digital economy and creative industries, healthcare, energy, agriculture, and aviation.

The Head of the Government of Vietnam suggests that USABC businesses should continue to act as a bridge between the US Government and businesses and the Government of Vietnam.

This will support to promote the cooperation channels between the two countries; strengthen the substantive and effective cooperation with Vietnam based on optimising the potentiality in the framework of Vietnam-U.S. Comprehensive Partnership relation, especially in the field of the economy-trade-investment; urge the U.S. Government to strengthen the economic and trade activities with ASEAN, to contribute to maintaining peace, stability, cooperation and development in Southeast Asia in particular and Asia-Pacific in general.

The Prime Minister suggests the USABC expand its investment business in Vietnam, focusing on the fields where Vietnam needs, and the USABC’s businesses have their strengths. The cooperation between business associations, industry associations and businesses of the two countries should be strengthened to create conditions for Vietnamese businesses to participate more deeply in the global supply chain and value.

The USABC cooperates with Vietnam in researching and developing specific policies to be able to approach and attract investment from the U.S. multinational companies in the two options: carrying out the big, high-tech projects, creating favourable conditions for the corporations to build the R&D centres, technology incubators associated with human resource training, modern management.

The council strengthens its cooperation, procurement and technology transfer to Vietnamese businesses, especially in the fields of vaccine production, therapeutic drugs, medical equipment, high technology, digital agriculture, and clean, smart agriculture to adapt to climate change.

The Prime Minister affirms that Vietnam is ready to import machines, equipment, tools and spare parts from the U.S. to improve the Vietnam-U.S. trade balance.

He suggests that U.S. businesses research and develop cooperation with Vietnam in this option and supports the Government of Vietnam’s cooperation with the U.S. Government in forming a bilateral cooperation mechanism on investment promotion to assess the potential, demand and investment cooperation opportunities between the two countries and increase two-way investment flows.

The Prime Minister believes that the USABC and the U.S. businesses will make effective contributions to the promotion of the Vietnam-U.S. Comprehensive Partnership relation more and more substantive and intensive based on mutual benefits, bringing growth and jobs for the people of both countries, contributing to the maintenance of the peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

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The Vietnamese government is willing to assist, share experience with, and support its neighbor Cambodia in hosting important events this year within its capability, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said during a meeting on Tuesday with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn.

Cambodian Deputy PM Sokhonn was in Vietnam for an official visit between Monday and Wednesday and to co-chair the 20th Vietnam-Cambodia Joint Commission on Economic, Cultural, Scientific and Technological Cooperation held on Tuesday.

Cambodia will this year host its seventh National Assembly election, the 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games), the ASEAN Para Games, and the 12th summit of the Cambodia – Laos – Vietnam Development Triangle Area.

PM Chinh expected the two sides to effectively implement high-level agreements and joint statements.

In 2022, their bilateral trade reached over US$10 billion, up some 11 percent year on year.

According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vietnam had 205 investment projects with total registered capital of US$29.4 billion in Cambodia, making it the biggest ASEAN investor and among the five largest foreign direct investors in the neighboring country.

The Vietnamese government leader also asked the two countries to boost cross-border trade and the economic development in border areas.

The two sides should continue joining forces in fighting transnational and drug crimes as well as in green transition and climate change response.

Cambodian Deputy PM Sokhonn said that Cambodia always attaches importance to the reinforcement and development of good neighborliness, traditional friendship, and comprehensive, long-term and sustainable cooperation with Vietnam.

The two sides agreed to continue to closely cooperate with and support each other at regional and international forums, and jointly build a united, strong, and prosperous ASEAN.

On the same day, Vietnamese State President Vo Van Thuong also met with Cambodian Deputy PM Sokhonn.

State President Thuong affirmed that Vietnam always treasures the support of Kings Norodom Sihanouk and Norodom Sihamoni as well as the leaders and people of Cambodia for Vietnam in its revolution for national liberation in the past and its current development and defense.

Vietnam always attaches great importance and wants to ceaselessly strengthen the neighborliness, friendship, and cooperation with Cambodia, the Vietnamese state president added.

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Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has revealed his intention to invite the leaders of Vietnam and six other countries to the 49th G7 Summit 2023, hosted by Japan in May.

Kishida announced the plan to the media on Monday during his visit to India where he officially invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to this year’s annual G7 Summit, who accepted the invitation, according to Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun daily newspaper.

Japan expects to invite Vietnam, Australia, Brazil, the Comoros, the Cook Islands, Indonesia, and South Korea to the summit, in addition to India. 

The upcoming summit is scheduled to take place in Hiroshima Prefecture on May 19-21. 

The Group of Seven (G7) nations consist of the U.S., the UK, Germany, France, Canada, Italy, and Japan.

PM Kishida did not give explanations about his wishes to include India and seven other non-G7 nations in the summit, but it is easy to see that all of them are Japan’s important or potential partners.

Currently, Indonesia is the rotating chair of the 10-member ASEAN bloc while India is the rotating chair of the G20 group, which includes the seven G7 countries.

Australia is an important partner of Japan in the QUAD group, including the U.S., Australia, India, and Japan.

South Korea recently resolved controversial historical issues with Japan and is moving toward a new stage of development between the two countries.

Brazil, the Comoros, and the Cook Islands are among the Southern Hemisphere countries with which Tokyo is looking to strengthen ties, according to a white paper on the Southern Hemisphere released by Japan last week.

Meanwhile, Vietnam has been an extensive strategic partnership of Japan since 2014 and this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations.

Cooperation possibilities for Japan and Vietnam are limitless, PM Kishida said when attending a seminar on bilateral cooperation in digital transformation, technology renovation, and supply chain diversification in Hanoi on May 1 last year, as part of his two-day official visit to Vietnam. 

Vietnam is now a member of the United Nation Human Rights Council for the 2023-25 term and has an important voice in ASEAN. 

The country previously attended two annual summits of the G7 Group.

In 2016, Vietnam joined the 42nd G7 Summit, also hosted by Japan in Ise-Shima, at the invitation of then-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who passed away last year.

Two years later, Canada invited Vietnam to join the 44th G7 Summit in Quebec.

In his message for the upcoming 49th summit, PM Kishida said the world is facing many challenges, “such as the global economy including energy and food security, regional affairs including Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific, nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, economic security, and global issues including climate change, global health, and development.” 

He pledged that as the chair of the Summit, he will “facilitate candid discussions among the G7 leaders to articulate ideas and plans for the future,” according to the official website of the G7 Hiroshima Summit launched by the Japanese government.

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