Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence General Phan Van Giang on June 2 received Ambassador of the Republic of Korea (RoK) to Vietnam Choi Young Sam, who paid a farewell visit upon the end of his tenure in Vietnam.
Giang congratulated the ambassador on a successful term of office and highly appreciated his contributions to advancing the Vietnam – RoK relations, helping make bilateral cooperation more substantive and effective across various fields, including defence.
Affirming that Vietnam attaches great importance to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries, he highlighted the state visit to the RoK by Party General Secretary To Lam in August 2025 and another to Vietnam by President Lee Jae Myung in April 2026. He noted that the trips yielded substantive outcomes and helped drive the bilateral relationship towards a future of shared prosperity.
Reviewing progress in bilateral defence ties, the official said that alongside the robust growth of relations between the two countries, defence cooperation has continued to develop extensively and intensively, becoming increasingly practical and effective. He highly valued the RoK’s support for Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defence in areas such as education and training, naval cooperation, war legacy settlement and defence industry development.
Giang thanked the Korean Government for its assistance in addressing the consequences of war in Vietnam, highlighting several notable projects, including the joint project on post-war unexploded ordnance clearance in the provinces of Binh Dinh and Quang Binh (now Gia Lai and Quang Tri), as well as the Vietnam – RoK Peace Village project for the 2024–2026 period.
The Deputy PM and Defence Minister expressed his hope that Ambassador Choi will continue to propose the RoK's leaders, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) give further support to Vietnam in this meaningful field.
Stressed the need for both sides to effectively implement the agreed cooperation areas in the coming time, he expressed confidence that Choi will continue to make positive contributions to bilateral relations in any future position while maintaining his affection for the Vietnamese people and the Vietnam People's Army.
On the occasion, he also asked the ambassador to convey an invitation to Korean defence industry enterprises to participate in the third Vietnam International Defence Expo, slated for December 2026.
For his part, Choi congratulated Vietnam on the success of the 14th National Party Congress and the elections of deputies to the 16th National Assembly and all-level People's Councils for the 2026–2031 tenure. He also conveyed congratulations from the Korean Minister of National Defence to Giang on the latter's appointment as Deputy PM and Minister of National Defence.
The ambassador expressed his satisfaction at having contributed to economic, cultural and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries during his tenure. In the defence sphere, he noted that the two sides have maintained such activities as deputy minister-level defence policy dialogues, officer exchanges and mutual naval ship visits.
He affirmed that in his future positions, he will continue to support and promote cooperation between the RoK and Vietnam, including defence ties, helping elevate bilateral relations to new heights./.
