On Friday 18 November, EU and Vietnam agreed in principle on a Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade Voluntary Partnership Agreement (FLEGT VPA) to address the illegal logging of timber.
The agreement was signed after six years of negotiations and paves the way for new export opportunities to the EU for wood from Vietnam using an "ambitious" licensing system, in the words of a European Commission press release. The Commission says the substance of the VPA has been agreed, while...