On March 20, 2024, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Quoc Tri met with the delegation from Argentina led by Marek Výborný, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, and Religion of Argentina, to discuss agricultural trade with the country.
On the same day, Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri held talks with the Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic to discuss future cooperation…
AGRICULTURAL TRADE WITH THE CZECH REPUBLIC LEANING TOWARDS VIETNAM
During the talks with the Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri noted that the relationship between Vietnam and the Czech Republic has been strengthened and developed over the past 70 years. Bilateral cooperation in the field of agriculture has seen positive developments and has received the attention and guidance of high-level leaders from both countries.
According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri, the Czech Republic is one of the 27 members of the European Union participating in the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA/FLEGT) with Vietnam. The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam hopes that the Czech Republic will support Vietnam in implementing the VPA/FLEGT Agreement, enhance cooperation in sustainable forest resource management, and implement CITES to promote legal timber and forest products trade.
In October 2017, Vietnam received a “yellow card” from the European Commission for illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. Vietnam considers combating IUU fishing as a priority task, not only for the sustainable development of aquaculture and marine fishing but also to demonstrate Vietnam’s responsibility and reputation in the international market. Vietnam has implemented various strong measures to address the violations in accordance with the recommendations of the European Commission.
“We hope that the Czech Republic will recognize Vietnam’s efforts and voice its support for the European Commission to lift the IUU “yellow card” imposed on Vietnam,” Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri proposed.
Marek Výborný, Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, welcomed the strengthening of cooperation in agriculture, food industry, and water management between Vietnam and the Czech Republic. The Czech Republic wants to promote education and training in the agricultural sector. During this visit, representatives from the University of Agriculture of the Czech Republic can connect with educational institutions and training centers in the fields of agriculture and forestry, sustainable use of agricultural products in Vietnam.
Marek Výborný stated that the total bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached $2.7 billion in 2023. However, the agricultural exports between the two countries accounted for a relatively small proportion. During his visits, Výborný noticed that Vietnamese partners have shown interest in entering the Czech market and have shown interest in traditional Czech industries such as beer production, meat, spirits, confectionery, agricultural technology, food industry, livestock farming, and veterinary products.
“The Czech Republic wishes for Vietnam to share its experiences in avian influenza and African swine fever prevention and control. We propose both sides cooperate in the research and production of vaccines for disease prevention,” Marek Výborný, Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic, said.
“Vietnam’s exports to the Czech Republic are ten times higher than the other way around. Therefore, we hope that Vietnam can support the Czech Republic in exporting meat products and both sides can soon reach a consensus on veterinary and food safety requirements for Czech products,” Marek Výborný expressed.
Marek Výborný also proposed that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam support the early establishment of a working delegation to the Czech Republic to assess livestock production and epidemiology in the Czech Republic.
In terms of cultivation, the Czech Republic has the world’s most reputable company in exporting seeds for grass, leafy vegetables, new plant varieties, bringing high profits to farmers. This is the area that the Czech Republic wants to promote cooperation with Vietnam.
Regarding the Czech Republic’s proposals for livestock product trade, Nguyen Van Long, Director of the Department of Animal Health of Vietnam, said that Vietnam has agreed to allow the Czech Republic to export dairy and animal protein products as ingredients for animal feed production. For meat products, the Department of Animal Health has completed the necessary procedures and reported to the leadership of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as proposed the organization of a working delegation to the Czech Republic as soon as possible.
VIETNAM IS ARGENTINA’S LARGEST TRADING PARTNER IN SOUTHEAST ASIA
Also on March 20, 2024, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Quoc Tri met with the delegation from Argentina led by Diana Mondino, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, and Religion of Argentina.
During the meeting, Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri highly appreciated the good relationship between Vietnam and Argentina over the past 50 years. Vietnam values Argentina’s role and position as a member and gateway for Vietnam to access the common market of South America (Mercosur). Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has always actively participated in the Government Commission mechanism on economic, trade, scientific, and technological cooperation between Vietnam and Argentina.
According to Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri, bilateral trade between Vietnam and Argentina has increased 13 times in 15 years, from $378 million in 2007 to $4.88 billion in 2022, making Argentina the third-largest trading partner of Vietnam in Latin America (after Brazil and Mexico). Vietnam is Argentina’s largest trading partner in Southeast Asia and the sixth-largest globally.
In 2023, the bilateral trade between the two countries decreased by 29.6% compared to 2022, reaching $3.45 billion due to Argentina experiencing a historical drought in the 2022-2023 crop season, causing agricultural output to decrease by 54%. The bilateral trade in agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products has maintained a level of $3.08-3.8 billion in the past 5 years (except for 2023, which decreased to $2.35 billion, a 38.5% decrease compared to 2022).
Diana Mondino, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade, and Religion of Argentina, stated that in recent years, both sides have actively worked to open markets for various products. Since 2017, both sides have been preparing for the content of the Free Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the Mercosur bloc.
“Argentine agricultural export products to Vietnam, such as leather products, fur, and corn, have been used in production chains and re-exported to other countries, creating commercial value for Vietnam. The economies of Vietnam and Argentina are complementary, so conditions should be created for both sides to explore more potentials for cooperation with more products,” suggested Diana Mondino.
She also mentioned that the competent authorities of Argentina have sent proposals to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam regarding the export of pork meat and pork offal from Argentina. Mondino pledged to provide Vietnam with high-quality, affordable meat and hopes that Vietnam will consider and respond promptly.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri agreed with Diana Mondino on the mutual support in trade and complementary relationship. He believes that this will help both countries develop and achieve the set goals. At the same time, he stated that he will assign relevant agencies to deal with specific proposals from Argentina, and also requested Argentina to consider proposals from Vietnam as soon as possible.
