The Institute’s spokesperson and advisor Jeff McCord said the US catfish industry supports the grant of permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status for Vietnam as mentioned in legislation coded S-3495. By granting the status, the US will create favourable conditions for Vietnam to become a full WTO member and accept rules and principles as the same as other member countries.

The statement said that the establishment of PNTR with Vietnam is conformable to the US and Vietnam’s wishes in order to address catfish-related problems through bilateral channels and WTO regulations.

The same day, in an article entitled “Hi Vietnam” published by the Wall Street Journal, Former US Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin who is currently director of Citygroup also voiced his support for the approval of PNTR for Vietnam, saying that the US Congress is having an opportunity to make a great contribution to the prosperity of the national economy and security.

Joining the WTO means countries around the world will enjoy favorable trade ties with Vietnam and in contrary, any delay means that the US will miss this favorable business environment with the country, Mr Rubin noted.