Israel wishes to be part of Viet Nam’s rapid economic development: Israeli President

Photo: VGP

The event, co-organized by the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Israeli Embassy in Viet Nam, brought together hundreds of businesses of the two countries operating in the fields of agriculture, clean technology, cyber security, information technology and clean water, among others.

Each country and the entire globe as well are facing numerous challenges in energy, food, economics and politics, President Rivlin noted, expressing his belief that mutual cooperation could help Viet Nam and Israel overcome those challenges.

For his part, Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue welcomed the Israeli President and businesses to the forum, hailing their attendance as a manifestation of the special interest in accelerating economic, trade and investment ties between the two countries.

He called on Israel’s consultants, financiers and venture capital funds, alongside its manufacturers, to visit Viet Nam and seek business opportunities in the country.

The deputy PM, who heads the National Steering Committee on International Economic Integration, said he hoped that with the optimal efforts exerted by both sides’ negotiation delegations, the Viet Nam-Israel Free Trade Agreement could be completed in 2018 as the countries celebrate the 25th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

After the opening session, businesses of the two countries attended thematic meetings on the topics of agriculture, cyber security, water, renewable energy, education, health and finance.​

At the forum, the Israeli business community invited Vietnamese companies to participate in the Water Technology & Environment Control Exhibition & Conference and the International Agriculture Exhibition & Conference scheduled in Tel Aviv in September 2017 and May 2018 respectively.

Two-way trade between Viet Nam and Israel have increased by six times over the past six years, from over US$200 million (in 2010) to more than US$1.2 billion (in 2016).