The ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and the lift of the yellow card on Vietnam’s seafood exports are on the agenda in these meetings.

General Director of the General Department of Vietnam Customs (GDVC) and Director-General of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) signed a customs administrative cooperation agreement between the Vietnamese Finance Ministry and OLAF in Brussels on December 14.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has called on businesses and groups from Belgium’s Wallonia region to expand their operations in Vietnam in new areas as well as introduce other firms to the country.

European Union leaders on Thursday sought ways to stand up to the United States over its new green technologies plan that they say unfairly discriminates against Washington's best global ally when both should be standing shoulder to shoulder in their rivalry with Russia and China.

EU leaders meet their counterparts from Southeast Asia for a summit in Brussels on Wednesday, looking to bolster ties in the face of the war in Ukraine and challenges from China.

Vietnam has experienced significant market fluctuations this year, but has made progress in expanding the market for its agricultural products.

Vietnam supports the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry (FESI) to develop its production system of footwear and sporting goods in the country.

Vietnam is considered by European investors as a potential market, a promising center of the ASEAN region, especially when the country draws international attention to its net-zero emissions commitment by 2050.

China has challenged a move by the United States to block sales of advanced computer chips and chip-making equipment to Chinese companies by launching a trade dispute at the World Trade Organization, calling the measures “trade protectionism.”

The free trade agreement (FTA) between Indonesia and South Korea is set to take effect, after Indonesia’s parliament recently ratified the deal.