Werner Langen, head of a nine-strong delegation of the European Parliament in Vietnam for a three-day visit, told reporters here on Wednesday that efforts toward the agreement were paying off.

“We will make progress soon on the agreement, not in years but in the next months,” said Langen, who serves as chair of the Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs as well as chair of the Parliament’s delegation for relations with ASEAN.

He told reporters at a news conference on Wednesday on his first visit to Vietnam that other eight members in the delegation represent four different political groups in the European Parliament.

The European Union considers Vietnam not only an outstanding member in ASEAN but also a big potential market with a population of 85 million, and an FTA would help spur economic relationship between Vietnam and the EU.
“We believe that bilateral economic relationship will be improved through the FTA,” he said.

“The FTA is still in the early stage of negotiation, so we’re unable to say anything about the result of the negotiation, but we’re confident about the agreement because problems, including trade barrier, environment protection, social issues and human rights are taken seriously by the Vietnamese Government,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sean Doyle, ambassador and head of the Delegation of the European Commission to Vietnam, said the FTA negotiation process is expected to starts in the coming weeks and last from one to two years.

The nine members while in Vietnam had meetings with leaders of the National Assembly, Government, and relevant ministries, including the ministries of Industry and Trade, Justice, and Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs. They also met HCMC leaders on Wednesday.

Under the EU’s new Lisbon Treaty, the European Parliament is given the ratification power to international issues concerning the European Union, so the FTA takes effect only when it receives the parliament’s endorsement.

Europe is boosting bilateral trade agreements with ASEAN members after the multi-lateral agreement came to a standstill last year. According to Langen, Singapore is the first priority and Vietnam comes next in the EU bid to negotiate bilateral FTAs with ASEAN members.