Vietnam, Israel sign Free Trade Agreement

Vietnam and Israel signed the Vietnam - Israel Free Trade Agreement in Tel Aviv on July 25 in the presence of Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

This is the first FTA between a Southeast Asian country and Israel, and also Vietnam’s 16th with global partners.

The trade pact covers many fields of mutual, such as trade in goods, services - investment, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs, and government procurement, among others.

It will ultimately remove duties on at least 85.8 percent of Vietnamese exports and 92.7 percent of Israeli exports.

At the talks after the signing ceremony, Deputy PM Tran Luu Quang said, Vietnam encourages and will create favorable conditions for Israeli businesses. He suggested the two sides accelerate negotiations and soon ink an agreement on labor cooperation.

Agreeing with the Vietnamese official’s proposals, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will direct the Israeli relevant quarters to coordinate with the Vietnamese side in these issues.