The European Commission (EC) on October 17 submitted for approval a free trade agreement (FTA) with Vietnam, the first comprehensive open market deal between the EU and a developing Asian country. 

Agreements on trade and investment between the EU and Vietnam will need approval from the bloc’s 28 members and from the European Parliament (EP). 

The trade deal would eliminate 99 percent of all tariffs, although some staged over a time period and some limited by quotas. 

Vietnam, for example, would cut its duty on EU car imports from 78 percent to zero over 10 years and for wines and spirits, from around 50 percent, over seven years. EU companies would also be able to bid for Vietnamese public contracts. 

In return, the EU would take seven years to eliminate its duties on certain Vietnamese products, such as its major textiles, clothing and footwear exports. 

Vietnam has pledged to protect 169 European food and drinks products, such as champagne or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese. 

The agreement includes a chapter on sustainable development, such as implementing international standards on labour rights and the Paris climate accord.-VNA