VIETNAM, the newest and poorest member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is unable to keep pace with the group's commitment to free trade.
Officials of the group's other six nations expressed dissatisfaction with Vietnam during talks in Bangkok on Wednesday that extended late into the night.
Vietnam was supposed to have submitted a complete tariff reduction programme for the proposed Asean Free Trade Area, which envisages cutting tariffs to a maximum of 5 per cent by 2003.
But so far it has submitted only a partial list, a senior Thai official, Krirk-Krai Jirapaet, said.
'We hope it can be done without further delay,' he said, adding that it must be done by Sunday before a meeting of the Asean Free Trade Council.
The meeting, and others by Asean economic and foreign ministers, is part of preparations for a summit on December 14-15. Asean also includes Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore.
