Cambodia’s suspension of fish import goes against WTO trade liberation spirit: Minister

Proccessing Tra fish for export (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi – Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh said Cambodia’s recent suspension of the import of some species of fish from neighbouring countries goes against a trade liberation spirit of the World Trade Organisation and the ASEAN Economic Community, of which both countries are members.

In a letter sent to Cambodian Minister of Commerce Pan Sorasak, Minister Anh also noted that the ban will negatively impact both Cambodian and Vietnamese enterprises and consumers.

Anh sent the letter after the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries announced a decision on January 8 on temporarily banning the import of farmed fish, especially catfish, giant snakehead fish and other farmed fish that can be locally bred from neighbouring countries till further notice.

At Minister Anh’s request in the letter, the Cambodian Minister of Commerce and Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Veng Sakhon held a meeting on January 29 to reconsider the ban.

In the coming time, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) will continue working with relevant competent agencies of Cambodia to push for the settlement of the issue, and ensure the export of Vietnamese fish to the country can return to normal.

Right after the announcement of the ban, many catfish batches shipped to Cambodia via the Mekong Delta province of An Giang’s Khanh Binh border gate were denied entry and had to return.

According to the ministry, in recent years, Vietnam exported about 60 million USD worth of fishery products to Cambodia on an annual basis. Cambodia is not a major market of Vietnamese fishery products but its stable import demand has contributed significantly to border trade development.