Vietnam successfully organized 17th ASEAN Summit. (Photo: Chinhphu.vn)

(VOVworld) - A Thai researcher has praised Vietnam’s rapid and effective integration into ASEAN. In his article posted in the Matichon newspaper on Tuesday titled ‘Vietnam with ASEAN’, Thira Nutchapiem wrote that since it joined the bloc in 1995, Vietnam has proven its role as an active member in both political and economic areas. Politically, Vietnam has organized many ASEAN conferences at different levels. The country has contributed greatly to helping Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar take a bigger part in the bloc. Vietnam’s most notable achievement is also seen in its increased trade and investment with other member countries. Two-way trade turnover between Vietnam and ASEAN has risen from 7 billion USD in 2000 to 30 billion dollars in just 8 years, and is likely to continue to rise. ASEAN investment in Vietnam has also swollen from 3.2 billion USD in 1997 to more than 46 billion USD in 2009.

The author concluded that Vietnam is the third biggest country in ASEAN, with a population of nearly 90 million people and a young and qualified workforce. Despite some economic difficulties over the last two or three years, Vietnam is becoming a key player within the bloc.

Tong Son, VOV correspondent in Thailand