HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has instructed the State’s Committee on Overseas Vietnamese Affairs and the Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia to continue working with relevant agencies to help Vietnamese-Cambodian people affected by the recent fire in Cambodia.

The Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson, Lê Thị Thu Hằng, made the remarks while answering reporters’ queries regarding the victims’ situation at the ministry’s regular press conference in Hà Nội on July 19.

According to the embassy, the fire began at 3:30am on July 10 in Phnom Penh, completely destroying 56 houses and the assets of 70 Cambodian families of Vietnamese origin and another 10 Khmer families, she said.

Following the incident, the embassy dispatched officials to the site to supervise the situation, assist victims and mobilise the support of Vietnamese businesses for the victims, Hằng said.

The Foreign Ministry’s State Committee on Overseas Vietnamese Affairs also sent letters of sympathy and gifts to the Vietnamese families, the diplomat added.

CPTPP approval

The Ministry of Industry and Trade is working to complete all required papers for the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and submit them to the National Assembly for ratification later this year, spokesperson Hằng told the press.

Responding to reporters’ questions about the possibility of expanding the CPTPP, Hằng said the trade deal will enter into force 60 days after six of the signatories have finished ratifying it. Việt Nam and other member states are currently conducting ratification procedures.

The agreement aims to boost win-win economic co-operation between member economies, as well as contribute to regional economic growth and connectivity, she noted.

The CPTPP is an open agreement that allows other countries to join after the deal takes effect if they accept its principles and are approved by member states, she added.

The original Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was signed by 12 countries in February 2016, but US President Donald Trump removed his country from the deal upon his inauguration in January 2017.

The remaining 11 countries – namely Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Việt Nam – signed the pact and renamed it the CPTPP in March 2018.

The deal will create one of the world’s largest free trade blocs with a combined market of 499 million people and GDP of about US$10.1 trillion, accounting for 13.5 per cent of global GDP.

So far, Mexico, Japan and Singapore have ratified the pact.

US-Russia Summit

Responding to the questions on Việt Nam’s reaction to the recent US-Russia summit, the spokesperson noted that Việt Nam welcomed the summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump in Helsinki, Finland on July 16.

Hằng said Việt Nam hopes that relations between Russia and the US will develop stably, contributing to peace, stability, co-operation and development in the world. — VNS