Thank you very much for that kind introduction and the very warm welcome. On behalf of President Bush, I’m honored to be here. This is my visit trip to Vietnam, and the first by a senior Department of Commerce official since August 2000 when former Deputy Secretary Mallet was here. I’m delighted to be here to renew our affiliation, to see how business is going for our companies, and to check in on our commercial officers stationed at the U.S. embassy.
I'd like to acknowledge the key contribution that the American Chamber of Commerce and all your members are making to strengthen and deepen the U.S.-Vietnam trading relationship. The most recent was your support for the Prime Minister’s visit last summer to the White House in Washington. President Bush was very appreciative of your help, and he’s looking forward to visiting Vietnam next year in connection with the APEC Summit.
Since the bilateral trade agreement was signed a few years ago, we’re been moving beyond a trading relationship. It’s becoming an economic relationship. That’s important for our two countries. And it's important because the more nations that are active in the global economy, the more growth and opportunities there will be for people around the world. And this is vital for a creating a more stable and peaceful world.
U.S.- Vietnam economic relations Commerce between our two countries is growing and strengthening, evidenced by the sharp increase in bilateral trade … 400% since 2001. The U.S. is now Vietnam’s largest export market, buying one-fifth of all Vietnamese exports. There also has been a dramatic rise U.S. foreign direct investment in Vietnam. A recent survey showed that, when investment from regional affiliates of U.S. companies are counted, U.S.-related investment in Vietnam increased from 7% in 2001 to 17% in 2002, and 19% in 2004.
But as I said, the relationship is about more than exports and imports. We’re working together on a variety of broader economic issues.
Joining the World Trade Organization (WTO) will represent a major milestone for Vietnam’s economic development. It will integrate Vietnam fully into the global economy, and provide a strong free-market based foundation for growth in trade and investment.
Vietnam’s WTO negotiations are progressing well. In our bilateral talks, the U.S. team is seeking to ensure that Vietnam’s WTO concessions fully reflect, and in some cases improve on, the commitments it made in the 2001 Bilateral Trade Agreement. We continue working on solutions on difficult issues such as trading rights, the role of the state in the economy and industrial subsidies. And protecting intellectual property rights also remains a significant concern.
The U.S. is seeking an agreement with Vietnam that is based on commercial, rather than political terms. It is important that the business community continue to press Vietnam to enact the laws necessary to bring its trade regime into compliance with WTO norms.
I urge you to also keep an eye on the Doha Round of world trade talks. While Vietnam is not yet a member of WTO, the outcome of these negotiations will affect how Vietnam does business in the future.
As some of you may know, we’re at a critical juncture in these talks. The Hong Kong ministerial meeting is just a few weeks away, and a successful outcome is not assured. If the trade ministers are successful, the stage would be set for intensive negotiations on lowering farm tariffs and barriers to manufactured goods and services in 2006.
As a WTO candidate, Vietnam is being asked to commit not to raise its agricultural and industrial tariffs above current levels, and to reduce others. So Vietnam should naturally be interested in seeing whether the 148 WTO nations agree to make significant commitments in the Doha Round as well.
In the meantime, the U.S. and Vietnamese business communities need to keep pushing for strong market liberalization through the WTO process. If Vietnam is to join the global economy as a full partner, it can only take place on commercially meaningful terms. And the pace of that process depends entirely on Vietnam.
Intellectual property rights One area of concern that should be part of Vietnam’s efforts to open and modernize its economy is intellectual property rights. This is a major issue for the U.S. because three-quarters of the value of our publicly traded companies comes from intellectual property innovation and ideas. That’s $5 trillion, which is equivalent to nearly half the annual output of our entire economy (GDP).
We know that Vietnam is just starting to come to grips with this issue by setting up legal protections and regulatory rules. But the key to effectively dealing with intellectual property theft is enforcement.
Trade in counterfeit and pirated goods … movies, music, books software, pharmaceuticals or brand-name products … is a global problem. We’re not singling out Vietnam. This kind of piracy hurts the U.S. economy, cheats American innovators and manufacturers, and endangers consumers worldwide. It costs U.S. companies $250 billion a year in lost sales. We look forward to working with Vietnam on this issue, and we appreciate your support Bilateral cooperative efforts We need to work cooperatively in other global areas. The U.S. stands ready to assist Vietnam in a successful year in 2006 as Chair of the APEC process. We look forward to the unveiling of the themes, priorities and dates for APEC 2006 during this week’s meetings of the APEC leaders and ministers in Korea.
The U.S. wants to work collaboratively with the private sector to develop initiatives and projects of specific interest to industry. We also want to continue to open markets, liberalize trade, and facilitate business in the region. We seek and support your efforts in the APEC process to achieve meaningful, tangible results for business.
Speaking for the Department of Commerce, we especially appreciate the efforts of the Ministry of Planning and Investment and other ministries in Hanoi to continue focusing APEC work on issues affecting small- and medium-sized enterprises, including micro businesses. Small, innovative firms generate most of the economic output in all APEC economies. With Vietnam’s economic development also resting on smaller firms, they deserve special emphasis in APEC activities.
We’d also like to set up a Good Governance Program in Southeast Asia, and we think Vietnam would be a good candidate. Such a program would work to create partnerships with the local private and public sectors to combat corruption, improve business ethics and corporate governance, promote fairness in commercial dispute resolution and strengthen intellectual property protections.
Finally, on a related front, we remain committed to our Enterprise for Asean Initiative, which is aimed at enhancing U.S. relations with the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). And we are making progress on bilateral trade issues through our Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFAs) with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. We also look forward to concluding a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Thailand next spring. (The sixth round of these FTA negotiations took place this month.) In closing, let me stress that we see real progress in our relationship. Our bilateral commercial and economic ties continue to grow, and we share a common interest in regional peace and security. President Bush believes very strongly, as do I, that together we can achieve more as partners than as adversaries.
We ask that Vietnam continue on the road to becoming a full member of world economy adopting market-based principles. We urge this because doing so is strongly in Vietnam’s best interest. History teaches that healthy market economies offer the most effective means for creating jobs, lifting incomes, building wealth and improving standards of living.
So as we move ahead, let’s do our best to work government-to-government, industry-to-industry as partners to secure a safe and prosperous future for our citizens.
Thank you very much.
Source: U.S. Department of Commerce
