Rome (VNA) – 2020 is the year that Vietnam was poised to make progress onits rise as a regional leader, Italy-based Inter Press Service said in itsarticle published on November 13.

Assuming the Chair of ASEAN in January, Vietnam’s diplomacy has provenadaptable amid the constraints of COVID-19, the article wrote, adding that thesuccessful completion of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)trade agreement under Vietnam’s watch this year will improve the country’simportant role in the Indo-Pacific region.

Eight years in the making and spanning over thirty rounds ofnegotiations, RCEP promises to buttress the post-COVID-19 economic recovery ofits fifteen members. Covering 29 percent of global GDP, its provisions spur thefurther development of regional value chains and greatly lower regulatorybarriers to investment, the article noted.

Vietnam’sleadership of RCEP marks its transformation to become one of the region’sfastest-growing and most internationally-engaged economies, it said.

The article said RCEP perhaps represents theapex of Vietnam’s efforts to integrate into the global economy starting in themid-1990s.

According to the article, coming on the back of its domestically-focused DoiMoi (renewal) economic reforms that began in 1986, Vietnam joined ASEAN in 1995and acceded to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2007. It eschewedprotectionism and began pursuing a number of free trade agreements starting in2005.

At present, Vietnam has signed a number of free trade agreements (FTAs) withadvanced economies.

Vietnam has emerged not only as a participant in multilateral trade efforts, but as a leading proponent ofregional trade integration. It is a member of the Comprehensive and ProgressiveAgreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) with the participation of manycountries, including Australia, New Zealand, and Japan.

RCEP continues Vietnam’s efforts, and Vietnam once again delivers an importantnew institution while it presides in its moment as ASEAN Chair. RCEP will putVietnam and its Indo-Pacific partners in a good place to solve the economic problems pressuring the region, not the least the fallout from the COVID-19pandemic, which has hit Southeast Asia particularly hard, the article said.

According to the article, with its domestic outbreak under control, Vietnam’sstanding in the forecasts for economic growth is promising. Even under the mostpessimistic modelling, Vietnam’s economy should maintain positive growth in2020.

By the time Vietnam next takes the reins as ASEAN Chair, presumably in2030, its economy will be well on its way to becoming one of the regional’s largest economies, and RCEP will get alot of credit for that progress.

Along with catalysing post-COVID-19 economic growth in the broader Indo-Pacificregion, RCEP will further enhance Vietnam’s ability to attract the investmentit needs to propel its economy in this promising direction, it said./.