 Despite Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan's firm reassurance that "[t]here will be no more delays and that all ten ASEAN countries will participate", even the most fervent proponents of AEC worried that AEC would not be delivered on time as December 2015 neared.An article published by "Vietnam News" echoed some of the challenges and opportunities that Vietnam faces in preparation for the AEC.The article said that the deputy head of the Import-Export Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Tran Thanh Hai, was concerned about local enterprises' lack of knowledge of the AEC.