The recent ratification of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) by the European Parliament (EP) is a major success after more than nine years of negotiations, according to David Jarkulisch, an economic diplomat from the Czech Republic.

Illustrative image (Source: VNA)

The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently published an article by Jarkulisch on the website export.cz, saying the EVFTA is the biggest and most ambitious trade deal that the EU has ever signed with a developing country.

It will also bring enormous opportunities for European investors, including those from the Czech Republic, he said.

He added that the EVFTA will not only eliminate tariff lines for 99 percent of the goods to be traded, but also facilitate customs procedures and remove non-tariff barriers to trade, thus making it easier for European companies to access Vietnamese government’s public procurement contracts and provide stronger protection for intellectual property rights.

For the Czech Republic, since most of its exports to Vietnam belong to the group of machinery and equipment – which has the fastest tax reduction rate, the EVFTA will facilitate Czech products to penetrate into the Vietnamese market.

Automobile, farm produce and beer will also be promising fields for the European country, he added.

On February 13, the Chamber of Deputies (Lower House) of the Parliament of the Czech Republic passed a resolution supporting some international agreements, including the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

The EVIPA was adopted by the Czech Senate in late January this year.