Addressing over 300 businesses at the Vietnam – India trade and investment forum in New Delhi on October 27, the PM announced that India’s Tata Group and the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade are taking the final steps to commence building of the US$1.8 billion Long Phu 2 thermo-power plant, the largest Indian project in Vietnam.
India considers Vietnam a pillar in its Look East policy while Vietnam values the strategic partnership with India − established in 2007 − as a priority in its external policy. These are considered as important foundations for both countries to share co-operation opportunities and potential across the board in the coming time, the Vietnamese PM said.
He suggested making the best use of current bilateral and multilateral mechanisms, including signed agreements on maritime trade, double taxation avoidance, investment facilitation and protection, tourism and aviation services, to boost trade and investment.
In the meantime, both countries should work closely together at global and regional forums while forming an ASEAN – India free trade area and negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
Vietnam is, together with other ASEAN member states, accelerating the birth of an ASEAN Economic Community by late 2015, which would oversee a common market of 600 million people and a gross domestic product of nearly US$2.5 trillion, he said, confirming the country’s willingness to work as an entry point for Indian goods to enter the bloc.
He told the participants that besides the eight free trade agreements already in existence, Vietnam is in talks for another six free trade deals with the European Union, the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan, the Republic of Korea and the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
In the next two years, Vietnam will be a key member of an expansive networking system grouping 55 partners, including 15 from the group of 20 developing and emerging economies (G20).
In the PM’s view, the Vietnamese and Indian economies are complementary, with the latter likely to be a supplier of raw materials used in garment, leather and footwear, and mechanical engineering and a potential buyer of Vietnamese consumer goods, electronics, agro-fisheries and wooden furniture.
The leader suggested more bilateral focus on areas of information and bio-technology, mechanical engineering, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, electricity, oil and gas, and agro-fisheries processing.
Vietnam wants India’s leading groups to develop infrastructure and partner in religious and cultural tourism in the country, he said.
India is now among the top 10 trade partners of Vietnam and both aim for US$7 billion in trade in 2015 and US$15 billion by 2020, rising from US$5.24 billion reached in 2013.
As of late September, 2014, India had 84 projects valued at US$260 million in Vietnam.
