Business leaders to meet in Vietnam

Business leaders to meet in Vietnam

HANOI: Government and business leaders from the Asia-Pacific, Europe and the United States will gather in Hanoi next week at a conference examining Vietnam's role in the Asian economy, organizers said on Monday.

Former top U.S. diplomat Richard Holbrooke, Australian Trade Minister Mark Vaile and Robert Madelin, director of the European Commission's trade department, are due to speak at the March 5-7 meeting.

Organized by the Asia Society, the conference will study the implications of the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral trade agreement which came into force in December 2001 and the Mekong region's emergence as a key player in the Asian economy.

The New York-headquartered organization said other topics would include the communist nation's continuing transition to a market economy, the development of its private sector and its efforts to attract long-term foreign investment.

They will also examine the "implications of its emergence as a trade partner for the Asia-Pacific region," it said in a statement.

"This meeting will bring international attention to Vietnam's prospects for growth as its leaders, increasingly supportive of serious economic reform, work to forge closer trading ties with the U.S., Europe and the Asia-Pacific region," said Nicholas Pratt, Asia Society president.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai is due to give the opening address at the conference.

Over 500 business executives and government officials from the Asia-Pacific region, Europe and the U.S. are expected to attend the conference. -- AFP