– Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang, who is accompanying Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung on his visit to the US, in an interview with Tuoi tre newspaper, said that if the GSP is granted to Vietnam, Vietnamese goods will not have to go a roundabout way to the US anymore.

 

PM Nguyen Tan Dung’s US visit overview

Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang

One of the issues Vietnam is most interested in during this visit is the US granting of GSP (Generalised System of Preferences) to Vietnam. The Prime Minister said that the fact that Vietnam cannot enjoy the US GSP is unfair to millions of poor labourers. How will the GSP help Vietnamese commodities penetrate the US market?

The US has granted GSP to many nations. Meanwhile, Vietnamese commodities have not enjoyed the preferences, thus limiting the exports of Vietnam’s most competitive products. This shows the unfairness of the US trade policies with Vietnam.

 

The products that need the support are fine arts and processed products, the ones that relate to the lives of millions of labourers. If Vietnamese exports can enjoy GSP, this would not only help boost economic exchange between the two countries, but also bring opportunities to small- and medium-size producers, Vietnamese labourers.

 

We have information that says Vietnam’s key export items, like footwear and apparel, which are now bearing high taxes when entering the US market, will not be given GSP, only some handmade products.

 

In principle, GSP is the programme a country applies to one or many other countries in order to support one or many categories of commodities that need to be promoted in terms of quantity and quality. The programme may finish after a certain time of application. I mean that some countries may enjoy GSP for all their export items, while some others only can enjoy GSP for some of their export terms, depending on the conditions of the nations.

 

To date, I have no information about which commodities will be granted the US’ GSP. Vietnam has asked the US to grant GSP to all its export items to the US.

 

When will Vietnam get an answer from the US about the GSP granting? Do you think that Vietnam will get the GSP this year?

 

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has received the proposal from Vietnam about granting GSP and has opened the issue for public opinion. After collecting opinions, USTR will analyse the issue and submit reports to competent agencies. I know a lot of US agencies support the granting of GSP to Vietnam in 2008.

 

Currently, a lot of Vietnamese commodities have to enter the US through third countries due to the high tax. Do you think the GSP can help settle the problem?

Making apparel products

The problem does not lie in the high tax, but in the discriminatory treatment in the trade between the US and Vietnam. As a result, Vietnamese commodities cannot go the direct way, they have to go through third countries to the US.

As Vietnamese commodities go through third countries, they cannot bear the original names, and are not considered Vietnamese products. This is happening with blue dragon fruit and Phu Quoc fish sauce.

 

Vietnamese vegetables and fruits have to take a roundabout way to the US due to the strict requirements set by the US on vegetation quarantine or technical barriers. If Vietnam has GSP and it can reach agreements with the US on the US creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese products to enter the US market, the exports to the US will surely increase.

 

While has blue dragon fruit been mentioned a lot in meetings of the Prime Minister with US agencies?

 

Because blue dragon fruit is a very popular product of Vietnam. Vietnam is the originating country of blue dragon, and can provide high-quality products. However, due to the technical barriers set by some countries, including the US, blue dragon fruit cannot be exported directly to the US, but has to go through third countries. Meanwhile, blue dragon is not considered a product of Vietnam. If blue dragon goes directly to the US in the near future, it will pave the way for other kinds of fruits of Vietnam to go the same way.

 

The Prime Minister mentioned the import of more than 30-month-old beef from the US. Could you please tell us more about this?

 

The US has asked Vietnam to import more than 30-month-old beef. Vietnam is taking necessary steps to test the quality of the products. Vietnam needs the technical assistance of an intermediary foreign institution. Vietnam will decide whether to import the beef once it gets a conclusion about the product quality.

 

(Source: Tuoi tre)

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