President Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) welcomes Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (Photo: VNA) The article quoted Wong as saying that “Thepartnership between Australia and Vietnam is grounded in trust.” She alsoemphasized that while the ties between Hanoi and Canberra “run deep,” the twocountries’ futures “are tied together.” To a certain extent, Wong’s message and Morrison’s commitment to buttressing Australia-Vietnam ties in 2019 arefollowing the same lines.
There are currently immense opportunities to advance Australia-Vietnamrelations, with trade and investment at the top of the list, it said.
Economic cooperation has played a vital role in pushingforward the bilateral relationship over the years. Vietnam is now Australia’s12th largest trading partner, while Canberra ranks 10th among Hanoi’s toptrading partners. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, bilateral trade grew by nearly50 percent in 2021 – the highest volume recorded to date.
In the first quarter of 2022, the two countries kept theirupward economic growth on track, with trade increasing by a further 32.4percent over the same period in 2021. As of the end of last year, Australianinvestors had 550 projects in Vietnam, with a net value of 2 billion USD, itnoted.
Vietnam’s wide-ranging exports to Australia includeelectrical equipment, footwear, machinery, furniture, mineral fuels, and ediblefruits. Hanoi’s major purchases from Canberra are mostly commodity goods suchas coal, iron ore, live cattle, and wheat. Given the rapid growth of Vietnam’seconomy, Hanoi has become an ideal site for Australian exporters, with highdemands for energy, consumer goods, machinery, and professional services. Withenhanced trade and investment, Hanoi and Canberra have sought to graduallyreduce their mutual economic dependence on their largest trading partner,China, and strengthen their economic resilience in the face of global crises,such as COVID-19 and the Russia-Ukraine war, according to the article.
Both Australia and Vietnam have made pragmatic moves to enhance ties. In March,the two countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to supportVietnamese labourers taking part in the Australian Agriculture Visa Programme.The MOU has paved the way for around 1,000 Vietnamese employees to work in theagricultural sector in Australia each year. Last month, Canberra and Hanoilaunched a new Vietnam-Australia Centre in Hanoi to “bolster Vietnam’s leadershiptraining and research skills” by drawing on Australian expertise in severaldifferent fields, the article underscored.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) receives Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong (Photo: VNA) By embracing multilateralism in its economic practice, Vietnam has sought toreinvigorate the pursuit of two ambitious national goals - shifting to amarket-based economy and increasing workforce quality. Australia, for its part,has described itself as “a strong supporter” of Vietnam’s participation in regionalmultilateral institutions.
Multilateralism continues to serve as the nucleus thatdrives the Australia-Vietnam relationship, it said.
According to the article, Vietnam can be a good fit forAustralia’s strategy of cementing its regional standing and enhancing its tieswith Southeast Asia. Hence, Australia’s future in Southeast Asia hinges on anelevation of Australia-Vietnam ties, it added.
While the journey of the Albanese administration has onlyjust begun, it has displayed a sense of eagerness and promise about Australia’sengagement with Southeast Asia. Given the flourishing trajectory of therelationship, particularly in terms of economic ties, the creation of acomprehensive strategic partnership will be a substantial step toward takingthe Australia-Vietnam relationship to the next level, the article underlined./.
VNA
