Attracting Korean investors to Ho Chi Minh City was the focus of a working visit to South Korea by a delegation of city officials last week.

A delegation of Ho Chi Minh City officials, led by its Party Chief  Dinh La Thang, met with the Busan-based Association of South Korean People Loving Vietnam (VESAMO) on Sunday afternoon as part of their working agenda in the country.

Other members of the delegation included Le Van Khoa, vice-chairman of the municipal People’s Committee, directors of municipal departments, and business representatives in the city.

VESAMO is a non-profit organization established in 2002 and consists of over 100 members, most of whom are scholars, artists, journalists, lawyers, and businesspeople in southern South Korea, who love Vietnam and the Vietnamese.

Since its establishment, it has been responsible for a range of events promoting the two countries’ friendship, such as commemorative walking activities and presenting grants to poorer Vietnamese students and victims of Agent Orange, a dioxin-containing defoliant used by the U.S. army during the American war in Vietnam.

VESAMO Honorary Chairman Park Kwang-joo asserted that there had been growing affection toward Vietnam and the Vietnamese among South Koreans, as the two countries enjoyed enhanced friendship and cooperation.

Thang expressed his appreciation for the association’s activities, regarding them as “tremendous efforts” to improve mutual understanding about the other country’s people and culture.

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang (fourth left) talks with members of VESAMO in Busan, South Korea, September 11, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre

On Saturday, the city’s delegation paid a visit to the Honorary Consul General of Vietnam in the Busan-Gyeongnam region, Park Soo-kwan, who said the visit had been warmly welcomed by the South Korean people and media, who had been giving the occasion generous news coverage.

As part of the officials’ working agenda in the country, a South Korea – Vietnam Business Forum was jointly organized in Seoul on Friday by the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Ho Chi Minh City, the city’s Department of Planning and Investment, the Department of External Relations, the Investment and Trade Promotion Center, and the Korea Venture Business Association.

Addressing nearly 100 participating business representatives at the forum, Party Chief Thang pledged to create the most favorable conditions for foreign investors in the city.

Ho Chi Minh City Vice Chairman Khoa and South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Tae-ho also presided over a ceremony to sign four memoranda of understanding on cooperation between the two countries’ businesses in chemicals, food processing, supporting industries, and infrastructure.

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang (fourth left) is received by the Honorary Consul General of Vietnam in the Busan-Gyeongnam region, Park Soo-kwan (third right), in Busan, South Korea, September 10, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang writes in a memorial notebook at the Consulate General office in Busan, South Korea, September 10, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang talks with business representatives at the South Korea – Vietnam Business Forum in Seoul, South Korea, September 9, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang adresses business representatives at the South Korea – Vietnam Business Forum in Seoul, South Korea, September 9, 2016. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The Vietnamese delegation also met with senior figures from seven major South Korean corporations, CJ, Hyosung, GS, Lotte, Hanwha, E-Mart, and Samsung.

The signing ceremonies of cooperation between CJ Group and Saigon Trade Corporation (SATRA), and between E-Mart and ITPC were also held.

The delegation paid courtesy visits to Korea International Cooperation Agency President Kim In-shik, Chairman of the South Korea – Vietnam Friendship Association Choi Yeong-ju, South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Cho Yoon-sun, and leaders of the Korea Foundation.

The Ho Chi Minh City officials were welcomed by Chung Sye-kyun, Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, as well as members of the South Korean government.

Chung expressed his approval and gave a warm welcome to Ho Chi Minh City’s enhanced cooperation with South Korean localities, pledging to encourage more Korean businesses to seek investment opportunities in Vietnam and the Vietnamese city.

South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn said that Ho Chi Minh City was a model of dynamism and creativity in the region, and expressed his hope for deeper and more substantial relationships between the two countries.

First Deputy Mayor of Seoul Ryu Gyeong-gi also confirmed that the South Korean capital and Ho Chi Minh City would formally establish cooperative and friendly relations in 2017.

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang meets Vietnamese expatriates in South Korea. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang talks with Vietnamese expatriates in South Korea. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang visits Vietnamese expatriates in South Korea. Photo: Tuoi Tre

South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Cho Yoon-sun introduces the Korean culture to Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) President Kim In-shik (fifth right) takes a photo with the delegation of Ho Chi Minh City officials. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Ho Chi Minh City Party Chief Dinh La Thang meets with leaders of the South Korea – Vietnam Friendship Association. Photo: Tuoi Tre

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