HANOI (Reuters) -Vietnam has submitted a document responding to U.S. trade requests and expressed its “determination and goodwill” in finding a common voice on the issue, its Ministry of Industry and Trade said in a statement on Thursday.
The ministry did not disclose what it had proposed to Washington.
Vietnam has been slapped with 46% “reciprocal” tariffs by the Trump administration. Though they have been paused until July, if they come into effect they could seriously undermine a growth model that relies on exports to the U.S., its top market.
The statement came as Vietnamese trade minister Nguyen Hong Dien and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer met in Paris to prepare for the third round of negotiations for a trade agreement between the two countries, scheduled to take place before the end of next week, the ministry said.
The Trump administration wanted countries to provide their best offers on trade negotiations by Wednesday as officials sought to accelerate talks with multiple partners ahead of a self-imposed deadline in just five weeks, according to a draft letter to negotiating partners seen by Reuters.
“The two ministers agreed to speed up the negotiation process, focusing maximum efforts to achieve the best results in the third round of negotiations,” the Vietnam trade ministry statement said.
(Reporting by Khanh Vu and Francesco Guarascio; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Sonali Paul)
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