Green trade governance and vulnerable groups in Vietnam: free trade agreements, state capacity and non state participation

New-generation free trade agreements shape environmental governance in Vietnam through implementation pressures extending beyond formal treaty commitments. This article examines how the European Union–Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) connect market access, environmental standards, supply-chain data, domestic legal reform, distributive capacity and participatory accountability. Using Vietnam as a structured policy case, it combines treaty and domestic environmental-law analysis, policy-document review, a structured synthesis of scholarship and secondary empirical indicators from official and international sources. It develops the concept of just green trade governance, arguing that implementation requires regulatory capacity, distributive protection and politically realistic non-state participation alongside formal legal compliance. The evidence shows substantial legal progress, particularly through the Law on Environmental Protection 2020 and related climate, fisheries and environmental reforms. However, persistent constraints in coordination, firm-level capacity, local implementation, data infrastructure and participatory accountability limit implementation. The article contributes to Asian public policy by operationalizing just green trade governance through measurable indicators and showing how export-oriented developing economies can evaluate green trade commitments through effectiveness, equity and accountability.