WT/REG406/M/1  
 
8 November 2021 
(21-8458) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements  
Hundred and first  Session    
 
FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE EUROPEAN UNION AND VIET NAM  
(GOODS AND SERVICES)  
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF  1 NOVEMBER  2021 
Ambassador H.E. Dr. Cleopa Kilonzo MAILU (Kenya)  
1.1.  The 101st Session of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (hereinafter  "CRTA " or the 
"Committee ") was convened in Airgram WTO/AIR/RTA/ 26 dated 20 September  2021. 
1.2.  Under Agenda Item C.I of the Session, the CRTA considered the Free Trade Agreement between 
the Eu ropean Union and Vietnam, goods and services ( hereinafter  "the Agreement"). The Chairman  
stated that the Factual Presentation had been prepared by the Secretariat on its own responsibility 
in full consultation with the Parties, in accordance with paragraph 7(b) of the Transparency 
Mechanism for Regional Trade Agreements (document WT/L/671).  
1.3.  The Chairman  indicated that the Agreement had entered into force on 1 August 2020 . It had 
been notified on 13 July  2020 under Article  XXIV:7(a) of the GATT  1994 and GATS  Article  V:7(a) 
(documents WT/REG40 6/N/1 and S/C/N/10 16) as an agreement establishing a free trade area for 
trade in goods within the meaning of Article XXIV of the GATT 1994 and for trade in services within 
the meaning of Article V of the GATS, respectively . The text of the Agreement and its Annexes was 
available on Parties' official website s and in the WTO RTA database . The Factual Presentation on the 
goods and services aspects of the Agreement (document  WT/REG40 6/1 dated 1 March  2021) and 
questions and replies on this Agreement (document WT/REG40 6/2 dated 26 October  2021) had been 
distribut ed.  
1.4.  The representative of the European Union  thanked the Chairman . She stated that  the EU 
welcome d the consideration of the Agreement and the opportunity to present it. In this regard, she 
thank ed the WTO Secretariat for preparing the event as well as all WTO Members for their interest 
in the Agreement, which had been  reflected in the high number of questions received.  
1.5.  She indicated that t he Agreement was the most tangible and successful result of co-operation 
between the EU and Viet and was one of the most ambitious agreements the EU ha d concluded so 
far. The Agreement's  final objective was the creation of new trade,  and investment opportunities 
and benefits for more than 550 million people. That a ctual opportunities had been  created was 
reflected in the increasing trend recorded by trade statistics.  
1.6.  She recall ed that the Agreement had entered into force on 1 August 2020  and was  in its 
implementation phase for 15 months at the time of the meeting . The EU and Viet Nam had also 
signed an Investment Protection Agreement, which would  enter into force after its ratification by all 
27 EU Member States. Only 8 had ratified it so far.  She stated that intense contacts between the 
Parties had regularly taken p lace during that period to ensure the effective implementation of the 
Agreement so that consumers and businesses could  fully reap the benefits of trade and the 
development opportunities that the Agreement offer ed. 
1.7.  She indicated that the Parties  regularly m et in informal meetings as well as in the specialized 
Committees that the Agreement ha d established , including  a ministerial Trade Committee, 
5 specialized Committees and 2 Working Groups. The first Trade Committee meeting had been  held 
on 19 July at minis terial level, preceded by the specialized Committees on sanitary and WT/REG406/M/1  
 
- 2 - 
 
  phyto -sanitary measures, trade in goods as well as the working group on intellectual property rights . 
The Parties were  now approaching the first Trade and Sustainable Development Committe e as well 
as, back-to-back, the joint forum, between  the Parties, respective "domestic advisory groups " and 
other stakeholders that would involve  civil society in  monitoring  the implementation of the Free 
Trade Agreement.  
1.8.  The Agreement had a very broad scope ranging from trade in goods, in services and investment 
as well as government procurement, intellectual property rights, technical barriers to trade, sanitary 
and phyto -sanitary measures,  and trade and sustainable development. She clarified that, for 
instance for trade in goods, the Parties had agreed to liberalize 99% of tariff s, both in value and in 
number of lines, within seven years for the EU and ten years for Viet N am. 71% by value of 
Viet Nam's exports, or 85% of tariff lines had been  liberalized on Day 1 , and 65% by value or 49% 
of tariff lines had  been liberalized for EU exports . In all these areas , the Agreement had contributed 
to increased legal certainty and pr edictability. Now, in the implementation phase, the Parties were  
monitoring that all commitments were respected.  
1.9.   She noted  that there was an important presence by EU companies in Viet Nam, which , in 2020 , 
was the 15th largest partner - 30th largest partne r for EU exports of goods (0.5%) and the tenth 
largest partner for EU imports of goods (2.0%) - as well as the EU 's largest trade partner in ASEAN 
with a total trade of EUR 43.2 billion . This show ed the exponential increase in bilateral trade flows, 
from EUR 12.7 billion  in 2010 to EUR 321 b illion in 2015 – when negotiations on the Agreement had 
ended . The EU's m ain exports to Viet Nam were machinery, pharmaceutical products, optical, 
medical, surgical instruments , plastics, wood, meat, aircraft, and spacecraft. The m ain imports into 
the EU from Viet Nam were electrical machinery, footwear, apparel and clothing, coffee, tea, mate, 
spices, and leather articles.  
1.10.  Despite the pandemic, a comparison between the EU trade with Viet Nam and with other trade 
partners show ed that total EU27 merchandise trade with Viet Nam from May 2020 to April 2021 had 
reached EUR 45 billion , an increase of 1.4% compared to the previous 12 -month period. Over the 
same period, total EU trade with other non -EU countries had decreased by 5.7%. On the other hand, 
there was a strong imbalance in trade exchanges, with the EU 's negative trade balance widening 
since the entry into force of the Agreement: EU exports to Viet Nam had decreased by 8.7% to EU 
9.5 billion, compared to  a decrease of 4.4% of total EU exports to other non -EU countries. EU27 
imports from Viet Nam reach ed EUR 36 billion , an increase of 4.5% compared to the previous 
12-month period and to a decrease in EU imports from other non -EU countries by 7.1%.  
1.11.  With the gradual liberalization planned under the Agreement and the improvement of trade 
and investment conditions, the European Union expect ed to grow stronger in key areas in which  it 
excelled, including in the supply of advance technologies, sophisticated machin ery, and equipment 
and its high-quality  pharmaceutical and chemical products.  
1.12.  In conclusion, the representative of the European Union  indicated  that the Agreement ha d 
shown its resilience. Despite the current economic and geopolitical challenges, the EU and Viet Nam 
had maintained strong trade and investment links. The EU  was confiden t that the Parties would  
continue to build on their strong partnership for a resilient  and sustainable recovery from COVID -19.  
1.13.  The representative of Viet Nam  showed his  appreciat ion to  the WTO Secretariat team's efforts 
in coordinating and preparing the documents submitted to the meeting concerning th e Agreement . 
He thank ed EU colleagues f or their close cooperation in the implementation of the Agreement over 
the past 15 months, as well as their presentation.  He also thanked WTO Members for their interest 
and questions regarding the Agreement.  
1.14.  He stated that t he Agreement  was a new generatio n, high standard, and ambitious free trade 
agreement with a wide-ranging  coverage and advanced level s of commitment from traditional trade 
issues to modern ones that were very new to Viet Nam.  Through the commitments of the Agreement , 
Viet Nam  had been mak ing efforts to promote institutional reforms, transparency, and build ing an 
open and favourable  trade - investment environment for businesses from both sides to fully realize 
the benefits of the Agreement.  
1.15.  He stated that, i n 2020, Viet nam and the EU had celebrated the ir 30-year diplomatic relation s 
and had officially brought the Agreement into force . Since then, the ir trade -investment relationship WT/REG406/M/1  
 
- 3 - 
 
  had been continuously promoted, despite the enormous challenges of the Covid -19 pandemic. This 
had been  reflected in impressive outcomes in the ir two-way trade. The latest available data from 
Viet Nam Custo ms from August 2020 to July 2021 show ed that, after 1 year of implementation, the 
total import -export turnover between Viet Nam and the EU had reached USD 54.6 billion with an 
increase of 11.9% over the previous period, with exports from Viet Nam to the EU  increas ing by  
11.3%, and imports from the EU by 12.4%.  
1.16.  The trend had also been seen in the first 9 months of 2021. Viet Nam's imports and exports 
from and to the EU  had increased by 17% and 11 .7%, respectively, compared to the same period 
in 2020. These o utcomes not only show ed the effect of the Agreement, but also the special and 
significant role of the EU import and export markets for Vietnamese businesses.  
1.17.  The representative of Viet Nam  confirmed that, a s said by the EU, Viet Nam and the EU had 
been dev eloping and operating institutions  to supervise  the implementation of the Agreement. Each 
Party had appointed representatives from relevant ministries to participate in specialized committees 
and working groups established under the Agreement. These bodies  had met to exchange and 
update implementation by both Parties  as well as to seek solutions o n issues arising from the 
implementation process.  As the EU had already mentioned, in July 2021, Viet Nam and the EU had 
successfully organized the Trade Committee  meeting, co -chaired by the Vietnamese  Minister of 
Industry and Trade and the EU Commission 's Executive  Vice-President. Following up on the 
directions  given, both Parties  had been actively cooperating towards the effective implementation of 
the Agreement .  
1.18.  He concluded by stating that t he Agreement ha d started in  a difficult  year due to the impact 
of external factors, but the fruitful  results had given Vietnam  the motivation t o believe that the trade 
and investment relationship between the Parties  would  keep growing stronger in the future, 
especially for a resilient and sustainable recovery from COVID -19.  
1.19.  The representative of Canada  thanked the European Union and Viet Nam for  their presentation 
and for their participation in this very important  process relating to transparency within the WTO .  
1.20.  The representative of the United States  thanked the Parties and the Secretariat for the 
transparency on this Agreement . She also  expres sed appreciation for the responses  received to the 
questions the United States had posed on specific aspects of the Agreement , including transparency 
disciplines, rules of origin, TRQs, subsidies, export licensing procedures, and protection of 
geographical  indication s. 
1.21.  The Chairman  noted the consideration of the goods and services aspects of the Free Trade 
Agreement between the European Union and Vietnam  had allowed the Committee to clarify a number 
of questions and conclude oral discussion of th e RTA in accordance with paragraph 11 of the 
Transparency Mechanism. Any delegations wishing to ask follow -up questions were invited to 
forward submissions in writing to the Secretariat by 8 November 2021 and the Parties were asked 
to submit replies in writ ing by no later than 22 November 2021. In accordance with paragraph 13 
of the Transparency Mechanism all written submissions, as well as minutes of this meeting would be 
circulated promptly, in all WTO official languages, and made available on the WTO webs ite.  
1.22.  The Committee took note  of the comments made.  
__________