Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at a meeting in Hiroshima, Japan, May 20, 2023. (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam and Canada have seen “quantumleaps” in their relationship over the past five decades, Canadian Ambassador ShawnPerry Steil has affirmed.
Talking to the press on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties (1973-2023), the diplomat said therelationship has evolved in an “interesting way”.
Apart from the establishment of the diplomaticrelations in 1973, the opening of the Canadian and Vietnamese embassies inrespective countries and the formation of the comprehensive partnership on theoccasion of the official visit to Vietnam by Canadian Prime Minister JustinTrudeau in November 2017 are major milestones in the relationship, whichchallenge both countries to boost their cooperation even further, according tothe ambassador.
Steil said that the early days of cooperation focusedon development assistance, mainly poverty reduction. Since Vietnam’s economystarted to grow, Canada has provided support to its small and women-ledbusinesses.
Such efforts paid off as Vietnam has become Canada’slargest trade partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), hesaid, emphasising the “thriving partnership” and “extremely gratifying” trade betweenthe two countries.
The ambassador also mentioned the establishment of theCanada-Vietnam Joint Economic Committee (JEC) on January 10, 2022, a mechanismthat provides an opportunity to discuss current and emerging trade issues.
Since the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), to which both Vietnam and Canada are signatories,came into force in 2018, Vietnam’s export to Canada has grown rapidly, he said,adding that Vietnamese products like seafood, fruits, furniture, shoes,clothing and electronics are finding an enormous market in Canada.
The diplomat called people-to-people exchange thefoundation of the bilateral relationship, which has helped facilitate trade andeducation cooperation between the two countries.
Given that Vietnam is working hard to raise living standardsfor everyone, Canada is also working with the Vietnamese Government andcommunity-based organisations to ensure that all people fully benefit from therapid economic growth and that social inclusion forms part of the SoutheastAsian nation’s development, he continued.
Notably, Canada has supported Vietnam in cleantransition and environmental protection, providing the country with technical assistanceand policy consultation to reduce plastic waste.
Canada is a member of the Just Energy Transition Partnershipand through that partnership, it is elevating assistance to supportVietnam in not only increasing renewable energy production, but also looking atincreasing the capacity to store energy, which is important for renewables, andto improve transmission, he said.
“We're particularly excited about supporting carbonpricing in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Government has a plan to pilot carbonpricing by 2025 and have a national carbon market by 2028. Canada is one ofVietnam's closest partners in supporting options to pursue this goal,” the diplomat added.
“I believe that the next quantum leap for Vietnam andCanada will be a partnership for the benefit of the world. How can we carry forwardthis strong partnership and understanding that we've developed to contribute tothe rules-based international order and respect for international law? How canwe work together to foster more peace and stability in ASEAN and Indo Pacificand beyond?”
Lauding Vietnam’s increasing role in the region andthe world at large partially thanks to its economic growth, as well as its “remarkable”international integration, the ambassador noted that Vietnam has been acritical partner and supporter to help Canada achieve a strategic partnership withASEAN. /.
Talking to the press on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties (1973-2023), the diplomat said therelationship has evolved in an “interesting way”.
Apart from the establishment of the diplomaticrelations in 1973, the opening of the Canadian and Vietnamese embassies inrespective countries and the formation of the comprehensive partnership on theoccasion of the official visit to Vietnam by Canadian Prime Minister JustinTrudeau in November 2017 are major milestones in the relationship, whichchallenge both countries to boost their cooperation even further, according tothe ambassador.
Steil said that the early days of cooperation focusedon development assistance, mainly poverty reduction. Since Vietnam’s economystarted to grow, Canada has provided support to its small and women-ledbusinesses.
Such efforts paid off as Vietnam has become Canada’slargest trade partner in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), hesaid, emphasising the “thriving partnership” and “extremely gratifying” trade betweenthe two countries.
The ambassador also mentioned the establishment of theCanada-Vietnam Joint Economic Committee (JEC) on January 10, 2022, a mechanismthat provides an opportunity to discuss current and emerging trade issues.
Since the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement forTrans Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), to which both Vietnam and Canada are signatories,came into force in 2018, Vietnam’s export to Canada has grown rapidly, he said,adding that Vietnamese products like seafood, fruits, furniture, shoes,clothing and electronics are finding an enormous market in Canada.
The diplomat called people-to-people exchange thefoundation of the bilateral relationship, which has helped facilitate trade andeducation cooperation between the two countries.
Given that Vietnam is working hard to raise living standardsfor everyone, Canada is also working with the Vietnamese Government andcommunity-based organisations to ensure that all people fully benefit from therapid economic growth and that social inclusion forms part of the SoutheastAsian nation’s development, he continued.
Notably, Canada has supported Vietnam in cleantransition and environmental protection, providing the country with technical assistanceand policy consultation to reduce plastic waste.
Canada is a member of the Just Energy Transition Partnershipand through that partnership, it is elevating assistance to supportVietnam in not only increasing renewable energy production, but also looking atincreasing the capacity to store energy, which is important for renewables, andto improve transmission, he said.
“We're particularly excited about supporting carbonpricing in Vietnam. The Vietnamese Government has a plan to pilot carbonpricing by 2025 and have a national carbon market by 2028. Canada is one ofVietnam's closest partners in supporting options to pursue this goal,” the diplomat added.
“I believe that the next quantum leap for Vietnam andCanada will be a partnership for the benefit of the world. How can we carry forwardthis strong partnership and understanding that we've developed to contribute tothe rules-based international order and respect for international law? How canwe work together to foster more peace and stability in ASEAN and Indo Pacificand beyond?”
Lauding Vietnam’s increasing role in the region andthe world at large partially thanks to its economic growth, as well as its “remarkable”international integration, the ambassador noted that Vietnam has been acritical partner and supporter to help Canada achieve a strategic partnership withASEAN. /.
VNA
