By Francesco Guarascio
HANOI (Reuters) – European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell will visit Vietnam next week to discuss how to boost cooperation with the Southeast Asian country in areas including security and sustainable development, the EU ambassador in Hanoi said.
Vietnam is an important trading partner for the European Union (EU), attracting the attention of global powers as it benefits from shifts in multinationals’ supply chains caused by growing tensions between the United States and China.
In a visit planned for July 29-31, Borrell will discuss with Vietnamese authorities “how to further reinforce EU-Vietnam cooperation in key areas for our mutual future sustainable development and security,” EU ambassador Julien Guerrier told Reuters.
The EU and Vietnam have a free trade agreement in place since 2020, which has turned the Asian industrial hub into the EU’s top trading partner in Southeast Asia for goods.
Several EU companies have made important investments in the country, including Germany’s engineering giant Bosch, Danish toymaker Lego, French pharmaceutical group Sanofi and Italy’s motor bike manufacturer Piaggio. Shoemaker Adidas has dozens of suppliers in Vietnam.
Hanoi has also signed a Just Energy Transition Partnership with Western and Group of Seven (G7) nations, under which it is eligible to receive billions of dollars in EU funds to reduce its reliance on coal and boost renewables.
However, divisions remain on human rights and foreign policy. Vietnam’s abstention from condemning Russia’s military escalation in Ukraine is seen in some EU capitals as a position too close to Moscow.
Vietnam’s postponement in May of a visit to Hanoi by the special envoy for the implementation of EU sanctions, David O’Sullivan, attracted explicit criticism from the EU, as it was seen as a favour to Russia.
Borrell, who is just at the end of his five-year tenure, will ensure “irritants are solved,” EU ambassador Guerrier said, noting O’Sullivan’s visit is now planned for September.
Borrell will visit Vietnam after attending a meeting in Laos of foreign affairs ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Since September, Hanoi has hosted state visits from U.S. President Joe Biden, China’s leader Xi Jinping and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. No EU Commission President has visited Vietnam in ten years, since Jose Manuel Barroso travelled to the country in August 2014.
(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; Editing by Michael Perry)
