Vietnam prepares for 8th round of WTO talks
Radio Voice of Vietnam
Vietnamese law-makers met with international experts on Monday for the first time to discuss Vietnam’s accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO).
The discussions aimed to facilitate a National Assembly plan to amend and approve laws in accordance with WTO rules. The participants also joined in a live hook-up discussion with Swiss and Vietnamese representatives to the WTO on opportunities and challenges facing Vietnam should it become an official WTO member.
It was reported at the discussion that Vietnam has experienced seven rounds of talks to date and is now considering necessary conditions for accession. Alongside efforts made by businesses, foreign experts suggested that the State management agencies and law making bodies devise action plans, amend and supplement, and build a consistent legal system to speed up economic reforms, to meet WTO requirements.
From Switzerland, Vietnamese Ambassador to the WTO, Ngo Quang Xuan, sent his message to Vietnamese law-makers, "I would like ministers to be questioned at NA sessions on issues relating to their roadmaps for WTO accession."
Xuan said the upcoming eighth round of talks would be very important because Vietnam must enter detailed bilateral and multilateral negotiations. At previous rounds, Vietnam answered nearly 2,000 questions requested by the WTO.
Xuan said information about Vietnam’s legal system should be updated regularly until the Vietnamese delegation leaves for Geneva. He called on Vietnamese law-makers to quicken and raise the efficacy of the law making process.
According to Xuan, the Doha round of talks would not end by the middle of 2006 as expected, as all concerned parties have not yet reached consensus with the European Union and the United States. In addition, the US election and EU enlargement this year will also affect the talks. As a result, Vietnam will gain some time to make thorough preparations for the strict conditions on agriculture to be tabled at the Doha round.
However, the Ambassador warned that Vietnam should not consider 2005 to be the deadline for joining the WTO at any price.
The eighth round of talks for Vietnam will be held in May this year. According to experts, Vietnam will have to complete three rounds of talks this year if it wants to meet the 2005 deadline.
