The time for lifting the illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing ‘yellow card’ warning imposed on Vietnamese seafood by the European Commission (EC) is coming, but Vietnam needs to prove it has controlled aquatic resources transparently and responsibly, the EU ambassador to Vietnam has said.

Ambassador Julien Guerrier made the comment at a meeting with Vietnamese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan in Hanoi on Thursday last week.

Guerrier, who is also head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, expressed his joy at Vietnam's strong transformation along the path of economic development and integration.

The EU deems Vietnam as one priority country in the bloc's relations with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and also as one of its most important partners in development cooperation activities, he said.

The ambassador emphasized that the EU in general and himself in particular are eager to continue to support Vietnam in achieving its sustainable development goals to become a developed country by 2045 and a carbon-neutral country by 2050.

Regarding the removal of the yellow card that the EC imposed on Vietnamese seafood in 2017, which has resulted in four IUU fishing inspections since, Guerrier expected that in the coming fifth inspection, the ministry would fully report the implementation of the recommendations raised by the EC during its fourth inspection in October last year.

The ambassador advised Vietnam to enhance its legal frameworks at the provincial level to combat IUU fishing activities and to improve the management of fishing vessel operations by ensuring the use of necessary equipment.

The time for the possible removal of the yellow card is coming, but Vietnam is responsible for demonstrating to the world its efforts to control aquatic resources in a transparent and legal way, Guerrier commented.

Despite undergoing four inspections on IUU fishing in Vietnam, with the latest occurring in October last year, the yellow card warning remains in place due to certain localities facing challenges in fully complying with the relevant EC requirements.

An EC team is expected to arrive in Vietnam late this month to conduct the fifth inspection, opening up a new opportunity for removing the yellow card for the Southeast Asian nation.  

Minister Hoan told his guest that he highly appreciated the sound cooperation between Vietnam and the EU in the recent past, including in agriculture.

Vietnam wants to expand cooperation in trade and investment, adaptation to climate change, reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and green agricultural investment.

He proposed that the EU consider lifting the IUU yellow card warning against Vietnam soon to help boost Vietnamese seafood exports to EU markets.

He also recommended that the EU apply the probability-based inspection method for Vietnam’s seafood exports to the EU, instead of the current 100-percent inspection, to help cut export costs.

He suggested that the EU support Vietnam to develop a blue economy, in which special attention would be paid to sustainable, responsible, environmentally friendly aquaculture and exploitation, as well as to the protection, regeneration, and development of aquatic resources.

At the same time, the EU should share mariculture experience, models, and techniques with Vietnam and assist the country in implementing programs that help fishers change their jobs that are affecting aquatic resources and the ecological environment, the minister said.

The minister affirmed Vietnam's acknowledgment and assimilation of the experiences and benefits offered by the EU as a whole, as well as those of individual countries within the bloc.

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