Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his South Korean counterpart Han Duck Soo vowed to boost two-way trade to US$100 billion by 2025 at their meeting in Seoul on Tuesday, after which they witnessed the signing of nine cooperative agreements. 

The meeting took place as part of PM Chinh and his spouse's four-day official visit to the Northeast Asian country starting on June 30 at the invitation of PM Han and his spouse.   

The two leaders expressed their high appreciation for bilateral relations as well as the achievements each country has obtained in socio-economic development since the two sides upgraded their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in December 2022.

Agreeing that economic matters make an important pillar in the bilateral cooperation, the host and guest affirmed the need to coordinate closely to complete the target of achieving $100 billion in trade next year and $150 billion by 2030 in a balanced and sustainable manner. 

The two sides pledged to expedite necessary procedures to open their respective markets for Vietnamese pomelos and Korean melons within this year.

PM Chinh proposed that South Korea continue to open more doors for other commodities of Vietnam’s strength, such as processed foods, farm produce, aquatic products, and seasonal fruits.

He called on South Korean businesses to expand investment in Vietnam, especially in the fields of LNG power, digital economy, green economy, circular economy, semiconductor chips, renewable energy, technology, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, and build more research and development centers in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese leader pledged to strive for an open and transparent investment environment, ensuring favorable conditions for foreign investors, including those from South Korea, to operate securely and efficiently in Vietnam.

He added that he would facilitate the implementation of bilateral development cooperation projects at a scale of $52 million in 2024.

The Vietnamese leader suggested the host support the early opening of a Vietnamese Consulate General in Busan City this year and establish a Vietnamese Cultural Center in South Korea. 

Chinh called on South Korea to simplify visa procedures and move toward visa exemption for Vietnamese citizens, contributing to beefing up tourism cooperation. 

He suggested that South Korea increase scholarships for Vietnamese students and continue giving support to the Vietnamese community in the country. 

PM Han said Vietnam is the top partner in development cooperation, the third-biggest trading partner, and the largest investment partner of South Korea in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Vietnam News Agency reported. 

He added that Vietnam plays a crucial role in South Korea’s foreign policy, including the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative.

The South Korean leader expressed his gratitude to PM Chinh for twice chairing dialogue sessions with South Korean enterprises to remove difficulties facing them and creating favorable conditions for them in their business and investment activities in Vietnam.

Emphasizing the necessity of creating favorable investment conditions for sustainable trade and investment expansion, PM Han suggested enhancing cooperation to encourage South Korean firms to invest in building stable core mineral supply chains in Vietnam.

He called for strengthening cooperation in future industry and expanding startup cooperation between small and medium enterprises of the two countries.

The host pledged to help Vietnamese companies integrate deeper into South Korea-led supply chains in the Southeast Asian nation. 

South Korea will prioritize supporting Vietnam in training human resources in the industrial sector through non-refundable development aid from the Korea International Cooperation Agency, PM Han said. 

He pledged to further expand the scale of grant aid to areas such as public administration development, e-government, education, and research and development.

The Korean leader added that he would continue to increase quotas for admitting Vietnamese guest workers and support phase 2 of the Vietnam-Korea Institute of Science and Technology project.

Han thanked PM Chinh for his invitation to visit Vietnam and attend the Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030 (P4G) Summit, which Vietnam will host in April 2025.

He affirmed that South Korea will support Vietnam in successfully organizing the event.

After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of nine cooperative agreements between the two countries’ ministries and other agencies, as well as schools in economy, trade, investment, development cooperation, startup ecosystems, education, competition, and consumer protection.

Prominent among them was a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on South Korea's non-refundable aid to Vietnam, signed between Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment and South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Another MoU was inked by Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and the South Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy on the formulation of an action plan to achieve the $150 billion two-way trade target in 2025.

Among the other seven cooperative agreements was an MoU between Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology and the South Korean Ministry of SMEs and Startups on development cooperation and exchange of startup ecosystems.

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