Paul Donnelly (Dublin West, Sinn Fein)
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278. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade if discussions on improving ties between the European Union and Vietnam were discussed at the most recent European Union Foreign Affairs meeting. [60376/21]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The European Union and Vietnam enjoy a good relationship and the current framework for engagement is the EU-Vietnam Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, which entered into force in October 2016. Discussion of the relationship did not feature on the agenda of the most recent Foreign Affairs Council.

EU–Vietnam trade has increased considerably in recent years and, in 2020, Vietnam became the EU's 15th largest partner in trade in goods, with bilateral trade worth €43.2 billion. A Free Trade Agreement between the EU and Vietnam entered into force on 1 August 2020, and a separate Investment Protection Agreement will come into force when ratified by all EU Member States.

2021 is the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Ireland and Vietnam. Our Embassy in Hanoi was established in 2005 and, in the period since, our relationship has gone from strength to strength. Ireland sits alongside Vietnam on the United Nations Security Council, and we work together to respond effectively to global challenges, not least through our support to peacekeeping. The Taoiseach met the President of Vietnam, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, in the margins of the United Nations General Assembly on 21 September 2021.

We will continue to build on this strong relationship, both bilaterally and in multilateral fora in the years ahead.