According to the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry, the delegation, led by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem, will leave Ha Noi on Nov. 5. It will include Trade Minister Truong Dinh Tuyen, who took part in the whole process of Viet Nam's WTO negotiations, Chief of the Vietnamese delegation to the WTO negotiations Luong Van Tu, his entourage, and representatives from relevant agencies and the press.

At the admission ceremony, Deputy PM Khiem and WTO member representatives will witness the signing of a protocol by Minister Truong Dinh Tuyen and WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy. Deputy PM Khiem will also have bilateral meetings with representatives of several WTO member countries.

Viet Nam officially applied for WTO membership in January 1995 and has gone through 15 required multilateral and bilateral negotiations with 28 partners. On Nov. 7, Viet Nam will be officially recognised by the international community as a member with a similar trade mechanism as other countries.

This will bring great opportunities for Viet Nam to enter the world market and attract foreign investment, but also put Vietnamese businesses in a more competitive environment with a lot of challenges, requiring them to make changes for development, said Duong.

At the last multilateral negotiation session on Oct. 26, international partners acceded that the admission of Viet Nam at that time helped lessen the tension in the WTO as the Doha negotiation round was at a standstill./.