PM Pham Minh Chinh begins RoK visit
A high-ranking Vietnamese delegation led by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his spouse left Hanoi on June 30 morning for an official visit to the Republic of Korea from June 30 to July 3 at the invitation of RoK Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and his spouse.
The PM is being accompanied by a number of ministers in charge of foreign affairs; planning and investment; finance; agriculture and rural development; labour, invalids and social affairs; trade and industry; science and technology; natural resources and environment; culture, sports and tourism; and national defence.
This is the first official visit by a senior Vietnamese leader after the two countries upgraded their bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022.
Vietnam and the RoK established diplomatic relations on December 22, 1992, and the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Strategic Cooperative Partnership in October 2009 and a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in December 2022.
Both Vietnam and the RoK are each other’s important partners. They regularly exchange high-level delegations and maintain many security and defense dialogue mechanisms.
The RoK is the leading economic partner of and the largest investor in Vietnam with US$86 billion in investment as of April 2024. It is also the second largest partner in ODA cooperation of Vietnam, the third largest partner in terms of labour and trade, and the largest source of tourists to Vietnam in 2023.
Statistics show two-way trade turnover reached US$76.1 billion last year. The first four months of this year saw their total import-export turnover hit US$25.5 billion, up 4% year on year.
Approximately 3.6 million Korean tourists visited Vietnam last year, while more than 500,000 Vietnamese travelers selected the RoK as one of their favourite destinations. In the first four months of this year alone, the RoK was the largest tourist market to Vietnam, with 1.6 million arrivals, accounting for 25.8% of the total number of international visitors to the country.
Chinh’s visit will focus on intensifying cooperation in traditional fields such as politics, national defence, security, economy, labour, culture, tourism, science and technology, healthcare, education, as well as emerging areas in which the RoK has strength and Vietnam has demand like semi-conductor, supporting industry, digital and green transition, circular economy, and climate change.
The PM will also seek the RoK’s continued support for the Vietnamese community in the RoK and enhance bilateral collaboration in issues of regional and international concerns.
