EC Vice President, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles. (Source: EU Delegation to Vietnam)

According to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 28, at the invitation of Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, Vice President of the European Commission (EC), High Representative of the European Union (EU) for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles will pay an official visit to Vietnam from July 29-31, 2024.

On July 25, EC Vice President and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell Fontelles visited General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

The EU Delegation to Vietnam said that Mr. Borrell then went to Laos to attend the EU-ASEAN Foreign Ministers' Meeting, as well as the ASEAN Regional Forum Ministerial Meeting.

According to Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu, since the official establishment of relations, Vietnam and the EU have experienced many challenges in the context of complex regional and global fluctuations. However, this relationship is increasingly deepening and bearing fruit. The support of EU countries for Vietnam during the Covid-19 period, both in terms of vaccines and personal protective equipment, is a typical example.

Currently, the PCA Agreement (the Framework Agreement governing Vietnam-EU relations replacing the 1995 Vietnam-European Commission Framework Agreement), which took effect on October 1, 2016, is the legal basis for a new stage of development, with a broader scope of cooperation and a deeper level.

The Deputy Minister affirmed that the relationship between Vietnam and the EU is a model for peaceful cooperation, and at the same time wished to further develop the bilateral relationship.

“As a developing country in Southeast Asia and one of Europe’s close partners, Vietnam clearly sees the value of cooperation with the EU in many areas,” Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Vu emphasized, adding that the EU is currently Vietnam’s largest development partner; the fifth largest trade partner and the sixth largest foreign investor.

Meanwhile, Vietnam is the EU's largest trading partner in ASEAN and the EU's 14th in the world.

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Source: https://baoquocte.vn/vice-chairman-ec-high-level-delegation-deputy-on-foreign-policy-and-security-josep-borrell-fontelles-tham-chinh-thuc-viet-nam-280444.html