US-Vietnam Countertrade Talks: Significant Progress Made, Says Ministry of Industry and Trade

As planned, the second round of bilateral negotiations for the Reciprocal Trade Agreement between Vietnam and the United States was held from May 19 to 22, 2025, in Washington, D.C. The Vietnamese negotiation team was led by Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, Head of the Government Negotiation Delegation, with the participation of delegation members and representatives from ministries and sectors, including Public Security, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Construction, Interior, Agriculture and Rural Development, Science and Technology, Justice, and the State Bank.

During the three-day negotiation, with high determination and effort, the Vietnamese and American negotiation teams exchanged views on all the contents raised before the negotiation with a spirit of goodwill, frankness, respect for each other’s institutions, and harmony and balance of interests, in accordance with international commitments and the development level of each country.

Both sides took time to provide information to each other on their current policies, clarified the contents in the draft agreement, and discussed a comprehensive approach to addressing the fundamental issues of common concern to expedite the negotiation process. At the same time, the negotiation team members of both sides had open and constructive exchanges on economic and trade issues of core interest to both countries.

At the end of the negotiation round, Vietnam and the United States made positive progress, identifying groups of issues with consensus or close views and groups of issues that need further discussion to reach an agreement in the near future.

Minister Nguyen Hong Dien had a negotiation session with Ambassador and Chief Trade Representative of the United States, Jamieson Greer, on May 21. Photo: MOIT

In addition, the two sides set timelines for feedback on the draft agreement, proposed texts, and organized online meetings to prepare for the next negotiation round.

On the last working day, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien had a negotiation session with Ambassador and Chief Trade Representative of the United States, Jamieson Greer, to consolidate the results achieved in the second round of negotiations and identify the contents that need to be further focused on in early June 2025.

Ambassador and Chief Trade Representative of the United States, Jamieson Greer, highly appreciated Vietnam’s goodwill and efforts in addressing issues of US concern and hoped that the two sides would continue to promote exchanges at the technical level, including at the ministerial level, to achieve results as soon as possible.

Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien welcomed the assessment of Ambassador and Chief Trade Representative of the United States, Jamieson Greer, and affirmed Vietnam’s determination in building and promoting economic and trade relations with the United States towards balance and sustainability for the benefit of the people and businesses of both countries. The Minister agreed with Ambassador Greer and assigned the technical teams of both sides to continue enhancing exchanges to soon reach an agreement suitable for the expectations and conditions of each side.