Hanoi (VNA) – Media reports in the Czech Republic have highlighted the importance of theEU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) for the country and the EU in general afterthe agreement was approved by the European Parliament (EP) on February 12.

Articles on the websites ihned.cz and E15.cz quoted parliamentarian DitaCharanzová, Vice President of the EP as saying that the European Commission (EC)has successfully negotiated a quality agreement, helping open a new market forCzech businesses.

Charanzová also stressed the significance of the trade agreement to the Czech Republic’s export-based economy becausethe European country is part of the global production line.

In his article on ihned.cz, reporter OndrejHouska said the EVFTA will bring great benefits to Czech companies becauseunder the agreement, almost all tariff barriers will be gradually removed.

According to the foreign ministry of the Czech Republic, the EVFTA will help thecountry’s exports of mechanical products to Vietnam increase by more than onethird in the coming years, and it will also enable Czech firms to have accessto Vietnam’s public procurement service.

The Czech Republic is one of the EU member states that actively support freetrade, it added.

Meanwhile, E15.cz said the EVFTA is consideredthe most comprehensive agreement signed by the EU with a developing country.

The website novinky.cz cited information posted on the EC’s Twitter accountsaying the commission welcomes the EP’s approval of the EVFTA and theEU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA).

Immediately after taking effect, the EVFTA will facilitate trade growth, createmore jobs, and promote economic growth for both sides by removing 99 percent ofall tariff lines, it said.

In Germany, after the two agreements were approved, key local news agencies,newspapers, televisions and radio stations also reported on the event.

ZDF Television said with the support of a majority of parliamentarians inStrasbourg of France, the EP gave the green light for the EVFTA, helping removetariff barriers between the two sides.

Meanwhile, the Tagesspiegel newspaper ran an article describing the boomingsocio-economic development in Vietnam. It cited data from the World Bank assaying that in the 2002-2018 period, 45 million Vietnamese people escaped frompoverty.

According to German media, with the EP’s approval of the EVFTA, the last realbarrier to this trade agreement has been lifted, opening up huge opportunitiesfor German and European businesses./.