Bangkok (VNA) –Vietnam and Thailand held the fourth meeting of their Joint Trade Committee inBangkok on April 20, working out orientations, measures, and action plansto soon raise bilateral trade to 25 billion USD.

In his opening remarks, ThaiDeputy Prime Minister and Minister of Commerce Jurin Laksanawisit affirmed his countryviews Vietnam as a partner of leading importance in Southeast Asia, and that itattaches importance to bolstering economic and trade ties with Vietnam.

He highlighted the increasein the two-way trade, thanking the Vietnamese Government and agencies for creating optimal conditions for enterprises and organisations of Thailand.

Apart from the proposalslisted in the meeting’s minutes, he asked Vietnam to create favourableconditions for goods to be transited under the agreements signed within theGreater Mekong Subregion and ASEAN frameworks, chicken and some fruits ofThailand licensed, and pharmaceuticals registered.

He also called for expandinglabour cooperation under the memorandum of understanding between the twocountries’ labour ministries.

Vietnamese Minister of Industryand Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said the initiatives, measures, and concrete actionsdevised at the meeting will create new impulses for bilateral economic andtrade relations, along with the countries’ coordination within ASEAN and othermultilateral and regional cooperation frameworks.

The two sides reviewedcooperation outcomes and shortcomings in trade and relevant areas since thethird meeting held in 2018.

They applauded the positivegrowth in bilateral trade which stood at 18.8 billion USD in 2021, up 17.9percent year on year despite impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The officials agreed to actively coordinate and facilitate import and exportactivities between the two countries towards a mutually beneficial and more balanced trade. Theyalso identified ways for strengthening links in agriculture, transportconnectivity, and investment.

Vietnam and Thailand agreed to boost coordination andmutual support at sub-regional, regional, and multilateral mechanisms likeASEAN, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Asia - Europe Meeting (ASEM), theAyeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS), the Mekong - Lancang Cooperation, the WorldTrade Organisation (WTO).

To ease the pandemic’s impacts onregional economies, they also agreed to tighten cooperation in implementing andupgrading the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) and ASEAN Plus free tradeagreements, with a focus on measures for facilitating trade, removing non-tariffbarriers, and enhancing transparency so as to ensure uninterrupted goods flowsand consolidate intra-ASEAN trade and regional supply chains, thereby contributingto post-pandemic regional economic recovery.

Talking to the Vietnam NewsAgency, Minister Dien said both countries are determined to developincreasingly extensive, effective, and substantive relations on the basis ofmutual respect and understanding, and win-win cooperation at all levels andin all fields.

Thailand is the largesttrade partner and export market of Vietnam in ASEAN, and also ranks ninth among the foreign investors in Vietnam which, in turn, is the second biggest trade partnerof Thailand in the bloc.

The two sides are dynamiceconomies in the Asia-Pacific region and boast much potential for further steppingup their trade and partnerships in relevant aspects, including energy,transport, logistics, finance, banking, agriculture, and investment. Both arealso members of many free trade agreements (FTAs), including the Regional ComprehensiveEconomic Partnership (RCEP).

Given this, they are holdingmajor opportunities for reinforcing ties within regional supply chains andproduction networks so as to effectively tap into FTAs, according to Dien./.