Costa Rica now has official diplomatic representation in Vietnam, with Víctor Hugo Rojas appointed as the concurrent ambassador to that country. Weeks ago, the Government Council had authorized the surcharge for González. He is a resident ambassador to Singapore and from there he will be carrying out Hanoi-related matters.
This past week, the diplomat completed the formalities and presented his credentials to the Vietnamese president To Lam. According to the Foreign Ministry, Lam “mentioned the interest in cooperating and designing a roadmap to bring the institutions of both countries closer together in the sectors of health, education, technology, sustainable energy, and trade.”
Closer to Vietnam
The sending of a first ambassador to Vietnam coincides with other approaches that have been made with the Southeast Asian nation. In early August, Costa Rica recognized the country as a “Market Economy.”
That is a struggle that Vietnam has been intensely engaged in, which has years as a socialist regime but seeks a more active commercial role. To date, it had 72 countries that recognized it as such, and now it has garnered national support.
Global partner
On the other hand, Costa Rica gained the support of Vietnam in its aspirations to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. (CPTPP). That was among the topics discussed in Ambassador Rojas’s meeting with his hosts.
The Minister of Foreign Trade, Manuel Tovar, has also participated in the approach to Vietnam. Weeks ago, the leader made an official visit and met with the Minister of Industry, Nguyen Hong Dien, and the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nguyen Minh Vu. An agreement was also signed between the trade and investment agencies of each country, Procomer and Vietrade, respectively, to follow up on the approaches.
