At his working session with the Israeli Minister of the Economy, Aryeh Deri, on Sunday, the visiting Vietnamese official said his country wished to intensify multifaceted co-operation with Israel, especially in economics. — VNA/VNS Photo Quang Hoan

TRL AVIV (Biz Hub) — More effort should be made to expand trade with Israel to US$2 billion this year and higher in the following years, said Chairman of the Party Central Committee's Commission for Economic Affairs, Vuong Dinh Hue.

At his working session with the Israeli Minister of the Economy, Aryeh Deri, on Sunday, the visiting Vietnamese official said his country wished to intensify multifaceted co-operation with Israel, especially in economics.

Bilateral trade exceeded US$1 billion in 2014 and shot up by more than 80 percent in the first quarter of 2015 compared to the same period last year.

Hue said the two countries have massive potential for collaboration, particularly in science-technology, agriculture, security-defence, trade and investment.

To reach the 2015 trade target, he asked Israel to create optimal conditions for Vietnamese produce, including tea, coffee, rice, seafood, handicrafts and natural rubber to enter its market. He also suggested it increase direct investments in Vietnam's hi-tech agriculture and processing industries.

In return, Hue said Viet Nam was willing to facilitate Israel's export of hi-tech and quality products, transfer of science-technology, and funding of production activities in Viet Nam.

Hue said the two sides should also foster partnerships in other potential fields, such as energy, information technology, new material production and consumer goods and food industries.

He also called for the rapid completion of a joint research report on the feasibility of a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) and asked Israel to recognise Vietnam's full market economy to enable FTA talks to commence as soon as possible.

Israeli Minister Aryeh Deri said the two governments should create policies supporting agricultural ties, especially in copyright registration, intellectual property and investment funds. — VNS

The official also concurred with the need for an expeditious conclusion of an evaluation report on FTA talks, adding that Israel would actively consider recognising Viet Nam's full market economy.

At the meeting, Israel agreed to share its experience in building a start-up business system and technological incubators. It also said it would continue training Vietnamese farmers and considering the use of guest workers.

Commission Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue also met executives of the LR and ORCA groups, which are running several projects in Vietnam. — VNS