Politburo member and Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City PartyCommittee Le Thanh Hai on May 26 had separate meetings with officials ofthe Republic of Korea (RoK) during his working visit to the country,which aimed to further strengthen all-around links between the twocountries and their localities.
At a meeting with Chairman ofthe ruling Saenuri Party, Kim Moo-sung, Hai expressed his hope that theSaenuri will share its experience in party building.
KimMoo-sung said the increasingly enhanced ties between his Party and theCommunist Party of Vietnam and the cooperation agreement for the2015-2016 signed between the two parties are strong foundations for thetwo nations and their localities to forge connections in the time ahead.
RoK groups always give top priority to recruiting Vietnamese labourers to work in the country, he added.
Duringhis working session with Speaker of the Republic of Korea (RoK)’sNational Assembly (NA) Chung Ui-wha, Hai stressed that Vietnam, and HCMCity in particular, wish to be provided with support from the RoK sidein fostering Vietnam’s development, adding that he hopes the RoKministries and sectors will seek effective measures to expand links withVietnam.
The Vietnamese guest paid courtesy visits to RoKMinister of Trade, Industry and Energy Yoon Sang-jick and Minister ofAgriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Lee Dong Phil, during which Haiaffirmed that the recent signing of Vietnam-RoK free trade agreementwill be a crucial base speeding up bilateral investment and tradeactivities, contributing to realising 70 billion USD two-way trade goalby 2020.
He shared his desire that the two RoK ministers willencourage and create favorable conditions for Korean smalland-medium-sized enterprises operating in the support industry,high-tech agriculture and food processing to increase their investmentsin Vietnam and HCM City.
Yoon Sang-jick asserted that hiscountry is willing to share its experience and assist Vietnam and HCMCity to develop the support industry in the future.
Receiving the Vietnamese official, Mayor of Seoul Park Won Soon spoke ofthe vital role played by HCM City in Vietnam’s development, stressingthat Seoul is keen on setting up multifaceted cooperation with theVietnamese city, especially in urban planning and architecture, tourismand industry.
The Mayor said he hopes HCM City’s leaders willfacilitate Korean and Seoul businesses to seek investment opportunitiesin the city.
While working with President of the KoreaInternational Cooperation Agency (KOICA) Kim Young Mok, Secretary Haihighlighted the relations between the agency with Vietnam, whileexpressing his gratitude to KOICA’s assistance to Vietnam.
Inits integration and development process, Vietnam wants to receive moresupport from KOICA in projects related to sanitation and environment,solid waste treatment, urban traffic, climate change and rising sealevels.
The same day, the Vietnamese guest also met withrepresentatives from the the Korean Foundation for InternationalExchange.
Bilateral trade reached 30.3 billion USDin 2014, making the RoK Vietnam's third-largest trading partner, afterChina and the US. The RoK is the leading investor in Vietnam with 4,140valid projects and a combined capital of 37.43 billion USD as of the endof 2014.-VNA