Newly-appointed British Ambassador to Vietnam Giles Lever said on Tuesday that one of the duties he has been tasked with during his term is to encourage UK businesses to invest in the Southeast Asian country.

The envoy will also work to create favorable conditions for British firms, as well as cooperate with the Vietnamese government to improve local business and investment environments, he told reporters at a media meeting in Hanoi.

Ambassador Lever presented his Letter of Credentials to Vietnamese State President Truong Tan Sang on September 10.

At the press briefing, he received many questions regarding his top priority in boosting bilateral ties between the two countries.

Among many areas on which Vietnam and the UK have committed themselves to focusing so as to intensify their relationship under a strategic partnership agreement, the ambassador said he will pay due attention to trade-investment.

Bilateral trade between Vietnam and the UK has posted strong growth since 2010, according to the diplomat.

In 2013, the bilateral trade value topped US$4.27 billion, a 19.48 percent increase from 2012, he said, noting that Vietnam reported a trade surplus with the UK that year.

The ambassador said he has been assigned to lure more British businesses to the Southeast Asian country and assist them in their investment.

The next priorities will be education-training and science-technology, Ambassador Lever said, adding that there are around 7,000 overseas Vietnamese students in Britain.

The ambassador will also concentrate on such global issues as climate change, Vietnam’s contribution to United Nations peacekeeping missions, and wildlife trafficking.

Security and defense are also an area that will be prioritized during Ambassador Lever’s term in Vietnam, he added.

The Vietnam-UK Strategic Partnership Agreement was signed in London on September 8, 2010 by Vietnam’s then-Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Gia Khiem, and then-Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs of the UK William Hague.

Besides the fields mentioned by Ambassador Lever, the two countries also agreed to cement ties in the areas of political-diplomatic cooperation, sustainable socio-economic development, and people-to-people links.

Cutting ODA

Ambassador Lever was also questioned about the planned shutdown of the Vietnam unit of the Department for International Development (DFID Vietnam) in 2016.

The DFID Vietnam is committed to supporting the country in addressing challenges, including poverty and the macro-economy, through a ten-year Development Partnership Arrangement, and will exit in 2016, according to its website.

There are concerns that the UK’s official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam will shrink following the DFID exit.

The ambassador confirmed that reducing ODA to Vietnam is included in a clear and planned road map by the UK government.

But he asserted that the end of DFID operations in Vietnam does not mean the UK will stop its commitment to supporting the Southeast Asian country in other areas.

Ambassador Lever added that ODA reduction indicates Vietnam has made good use of the assistance and made great progress at the same time. He would be proud of that if he were Vietnamese, the diplomat said.

The UK will indirectly support Vietnam, as the European country has considerably contributed to the budgets of the European Union and the World Bank, which still have many ODA programs for Vietnam, the ambassador said.

Giles Lever, born in 1968, joined the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office in 1990 and has worked in a wide range of roles, including in Africa and the Middle East, and on security issues. He has particular experience in East Asia, according to the UK government website, gov.uk.

He took a post at the UK Embassy in Hanoi in 1994.

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