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It looks as though the world has found a vaccine to fight the pandemic, but this is a story confined to powerful countries like the U.S. and China. As a doctor contacting hundreds of patients every day, I truly hope Vietnam will get access to the vaccine as soon as possible. Only when every person in the country is vaccinated can my colleagues and I feel safe. However, making this happen is easier said than done. High quality vaccines are expensive and even "affordable" ones cannot reach everyone. … [Read more...] about Covid-19 vaccine: best keep the ‘free’ market out of it

Koen Doens, Director General for International Cooperation and Development at the European Commission appreciated the role of ACTS: “The ACTS will make the movement of goods by road quicker and easier across the borders of the participating ASEAN member states, thereby reducing costs for businesses and citizens.” … [Read more...] about The launch of free movement of goods system in ASEAN countries

Hanoi (VNA) – The Japanese government passed a plan to sign a revised free trade agreement (FTA) with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) at a Cabinet meeting on February 26, according to Kyodo News. The Japanese news agency quoted Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono as saying that he hopes the revised FTA, which includes liberalisation of investment and service fields, will be a huge step towards enhancing the economic partnership between Japan and ASEAN. The country is expected to sign the agreement on February 27 and seek approval from parliament this autumn, while ASEAN countries will start the signing procedure from March 2. The original FTA between Japan and ASEAN went into effect in 2008 and was Japan’s first multilateral free trade deal, which focused on the trade of goods. To further optimise benefits from this pact, the two sides started negotiations on investment and services in 2010 and concluded at the ministerial level in 2017. ASEAN is the … [Read more...] about Japanese government approves plan to sign revised FTA with ASEAN

Hanoi (VNA) - Many agricultural products have been exported to Europe under the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Following the export of the first batch of frozen shrimp to several countries on September 11, the next consignment comprising dragon fruit, coffee, coconut, grapefruit, and passion fruit was shipped on September 16-17, it said. The EVFTA will see the EU remove tariffs on 86.5 percent of Vietnam’s seafood exports in the next three years, 90.3 percent in the next five years, and completely in seven years. Taking advantage of these preferential tariffs, Vietnamese exporters have increased seafood shipments by around 10 percent since the start of August. The EU is the biggest market for Vietnamese coffee, accounting for 38 percent of the total exports. The average value of exports to the bloc has been 1.2-1.4 billion USD a year for the past five years. Exports to the market is set to rise … [Read more...] about Vietnam boosts agricultural product exports to EU

Phnom Penh (VNA) – Cambodia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, on December 1, issued a press release on the outcome of the 23rd ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting, taking into account progress in the sides’ cooperation, particularly their join efforts in COVID-19 prevention and control. Per the release, the meeting noted the progress of cooperation via the implementation of the ASEAN-EU Plan of Action for 2018 – 2022 and exchanged views on how both regions can enhance collaboration to further strengthen their partnership, and to address immediate common concern such as COVID-19 outbreaks and other public health emergencies, and post-pandemic economic recovery. It said ASEAN member states welcomed the EU’s continued support for ASEAN centrality and Community building as well as the bloc’s announcement of 20 million EUR in support of the “Southeast Asia Heath Pandemic Response and Preparedness Programme”. They … [Read more...] about Cambodia reviews outcome of 23rd ASEAN-EU Ministerial Meeting