Nation up against last WTO barrier
Vietnam News
Nation up against last WTO barrier
17 December 2005
HONG KONG — Viet Nam was awaiting the removal of the last major barrier to its entry to the World Trade Organisation - the successful conclusion of bilateral negotiations with the United States - Deputy Trade Minister Luong Van Tu has told a Vietnam News Agency correspondent.
But the deputy trade minister, who is in Hong Kong for the sixth WTO Ministerial Conference that ends tomorrow, said Viet Nam would not impose pressure on itself by setting a deadline.
Instead, he suggested that the country’s accession was likely about June.
The deputy trade minister said that Viet Nam was in discussion with New Zealand as well as the US and the improvement of its legal system together with accelerated administrative reform were recognised as part of continuing economic renewal.
Viet Nam’s legal system would meet international standards before the country joined the WTO, he emphasised.
The deputy trade minister said that in the bilateral negotiations, both the US and New Zealand, had acknowledged Viet Nam’s achievements while the gap with other countries had narrowed.
Flexibility in the negotiations would now help Viet Nam reach its goal, he said.
The deputy trade minister said that Viet Nam’s attendance at the Hong Kong conference was an example of its desire to join the WTO, learn from other countries and meet with delegations from those countries with which it had signed bilateral trade agreements.
Viet Nam has successfully completed bilateral negotiations with 22 countries.
Farmers raise doubts
Speaking at an outside forum at the six-day WTO ministerial meeting, Vietnamese farmer Tran Thi Thanh said she wasn’t certain whether more developed countries would lower or eliminate their agricultural subsidies, a contentious subject now under discussion at the meeting.
These subsidies allow farmers from rich countries to dump products on world markets at low prices, creating hardships for poor farmers in less developed countries, said Thanh, who lives in the central province of Ha Tinh.
Thanh, who traveled to Hong Kong this week to take part in a people’s caravan organised by Action Aid, a non-governmental organisation, told other Asian farmers at the meeting that she believed Viet Nam must become a member of the world’s largest trading club.
"Membership in the WTO provides advantages to both developed and developing countries, " she said.
"But we need a fair playing ground. We hope WTO-member countries will create favourable conditions for Viet Nam to join the group and protect our farmers as well."
Deputy Minister of Trade Luong Van Tu said Viet Nam was determined to reduce poverty as well as reach its socio-economic targets.
"WTO is trying to balance the benefits between developing and least developed countries," Tu said.
"The Government has designed a millennium programme not only to reduce poverty but also to ensure constant economic growth."
These measures include supporting residents in remote areas, reducing the gap between the rich and the poor, providing financial support to those in need, and introducing farmers to lucrative crops and husbandry strains to improve profits, he said.
