A working session between Vietnamese and US negotiating delegations for the bilateral trade agreement. — Photo from the Ministry of Industry and Trade

HÀ NỘI — According to the agreed plan, the fifth round of in-person negotiations on the Việt Nam–United States Reciprocal Trade Agreement concluded after the three-day session from November 12 to 14 in Washington DC, the Ministry of Industry and Trade reported.

Việt Nam’s negotiating delegation was led by Minister of Industry and Trade and Government Chief Negotiator Nguyễn Hồng Diên, joined by members of the negotiating team and representatives from the Ministries of Public Security, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Home Affairs, Agriculture and Environment, Science and Technology, Justice and the State Bank of Việt Nam.

During the talks, the Vietnamese and US delegations made major progress on multiple issues, including services, digital trade, agriculture, technical barriers to trade (TBT) and sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS), while narrowing differences on outstanding matters.

In the closing session, both the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Vietnamese negotiating team assessed the round as highly positive, creating favourable conditions for the early conclusion of the Việt Nam–US Reciprocal Trade Agreement.

The US highly valued the goodwill, effort and creative approach of the Vietnamese delegation, particularly the results of the direct meeting between Minister Diên and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer held immediately before the official technical negotiations. Responding to Việt Nam’s proposals, the US side offered initial positive feedback and indicated it could consider further steps based on the overall negotiation outcome.

The two sides also agreed on follow-up work after this round and consented to hold several online meetings in the coming days to continue addressing outstanding issues and prepare for a virtual ministerial-level negotiation between Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Minister Diên, expected later in November.

In addition to the negotiations, Minister Diên held working sessions with the US Under Secretary of State, members of the House of Representatives including the Chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, and met with leaders of major US technology and semiconductor companies as well as the Footwear and Apparel Association, to promote bilateral economic, investment and trade cooperation and rally support for Việt Nam’s reciprocal trade negotiations. — VNS