Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte agreed to tap opportunities from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to raise the bilateral trade value to $15 billion in the coming time during their phone talks held on May 22, the Government News has reported.

PM Chinh reaffirmed that Vietnam always values the development of a comprehensive partnership with the Netherlands.

He proposed the Netherlands to soon complete the ratification of the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) and advocate the European Commission (EC) removing the “yellow card” warning on illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing imposed on Vietnam.

Dutch PM Rutte confirmed that the Netherlands would continue to encourage local enterprises to invest in Vietnam, particularly in high-tech sectors, microchip manufacturing, semiconductors, seaports, shipbuilding technology, logistics connectivity, and strategic infrastructure.