Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) have agreed to deepen their friendship and strategic cooperative partnership in a more effective manner while boosting exchanges between the two legislative bodies.

The consensus was reached by visiting Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung and RoK National Assembly Speaker Kang Chang-hee and Prime Minister Chung Hong-won during their talks and meeting in Seoul on July 22.

At talks with his RoK counterpart Kang Chang-hee, Chairman Hung noted with pleasure the fruitful development of the Vietnam-RoK strategic cooperative partnership in all areas over the past time, especially the successful organisation of the “Vietnam-RoK Friendship Year 2012”, which marked the 20 th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.

He stressed that Vietnam and the RoK are not only leading economic partners but also trustworthy friends.

The Vietnamese NA leader also expressed his delight at the developing ties between the two parliaments over the past time, affirming Vietnam ’s consistent policy of ceaselessly consolidating and promoting its strategic cooperative partnership with the RoK.

He thanked the RoK National Assembly for its support given to Vietnam in hosting the 132nd General Assembly of the International-Parliamentary Union (IPU-132) in 2015.

Chairman Hung invited his RoK counterpart to attend this significant event, hoping that the RoK will partner with the Vietnamese National Assembly to contribute to the success of the IPU-132.

For his part, Speaker Kang Chang-hee spoke highly of Vietnam’s socio-economic development as well as the country’s improved role and position in the region and the world.

The enhancement of cooperative ties with Vietnam has helped expand and develop relations between the RoK and other regional countries for peace, friendship and development, he said.

At the talks, the top legislators briefed each other on their National Assemblies’ recent activities and agreed to increase cooperation in accelerating and supervising the implementation of agreements reached by the two Governments so that they can bring practical and effective results to both.

They also agreed to step up cooperation and work closely with each other at regional and international inter-parliamentary forums based on the spirit of mutual support and harmonious coordination on regional and global issues.

 Following the talks, Chairman Hung and his RoK counterpart inked an agreement on cooperation between the two NAs and witnessed the signing of a cooperative agreement between the Vietnamese NA Office and the RoK NA Secretariat.

According to the signed agreement, the two legislative bodies will increase the exchange of delegations at all levels as well as the sharing of experience legislature, supervision and issues related to their operations.

The Vietnam-RoK and RoK-Vietnam friendship parliamentarians’ groups will further promote their role as bridges for the relations between the two NAs.

Meeting with Prime Minister Chung Hong-won the same day, the Vietnamese NA leader asked the RoK Government to continue encouraging its businesses to increase investment in Vietnam.

To reach 30 billion USD in two-way trade by 2015, the two sides need coordination in speeding up negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA), he said.

He highly valued the RoK’s development assistance, saying that it has made positive contributions to Vietnam’s socio-economic development.

He asked the RoK Government to continue considering Vietnam a key partner on development cooperation and prioritise the provision and increase of official development assistance (ODA) for the Southeast Asian country, especially in transport infrastructure.

The Vietnamese NA leader suggested the two countries coordinate closely to timely solve arising problems to continue boosting their labour cooperation.

PM Chung Hong-won hailed Chairman Hung’s visit, saying that it plays an important role in further raising the efficiency of the two countries’ strategic partnership.

Affirming the RoK’s priority of maintaining and strengthening all-faceted cooperation with Vietnam, the PM suggested the two sides continue to expand cooperation to better tap each side’s advantages.

The two countries should intensify the exchange of all-level delegations, as well as promote cooperation and investment between their businesses for the interests of each country, he said.

Earlier, when receiving President of the RoK-Vietnam Friendship Association Choi Young-joo, Chairman Hung asked the organisation to promote its role in helping Vietnamese brides in the RoK find stable jobs to raise incomes and improve their lives, thus contributing to creating gender equality and reducing domestic violence.

Meeting with leaders of the RoK Telecom Corporation, Charmvit Group and Samsung Corporation, the Vietnamese NA leader praised their effective business and investment in Vietnam , affirming that the Vietnamese NA and Government will actively work with their RoK counterparts to create a favourable investment and trade environment for both countries’ enterprises.

On the occasion, the Vietnamese delegation also visited the Korean Development Institute (KDI) and the Korean Institute of Science and Technology (KIST).

In the evening, RoK NA Speaker Kang Chang-hee hosted a banquet for Chairman Hung and his entourage./.