Vietnamese, Korean Prime Ministers hold phone talks

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh talked over the phone with his counterpart from the Republic of Korea (RoK) Han Duck-soo on July 5, during which the two leaders compared notes on measures to boost the bilateral relations.

This was the first phone talk by the RoK’s PM with a foreign leader since he took office.

Congratulating Han on his appointment as the RoK's PM, Chinh said despite global and regional uncertainties, including COVID-19 impacts, the relationship between Vietnam and the RoK has maintained its stable development pace, and the two countries have become leading important partners of each other, especially in economy, trade and investment.

He affirmed Vietnam’s consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation and diversification of relations, and being a friend, a reliable partner and an active, responsible member of the international community.

Vietnam always regards the RoK as an important, long-term strategic partner, and wishes to work together with the East Asian country to deepen the relationship, for the sake of people, and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world at large, the PM said.

For his part, Han congratulated Vietnam on achievements it has recorded over the past time, particularly in pandemic containment and economic growth, noting that the RoK considers Vietnam a leading important partner and wishes to work with the Southeast Asian country to enhance the bilateral relations sustainably in the time ahead.

He used this occasion to thank the Vietnamese government for its support to Korean firms, helping them maintain production in the country, especially amid the COVID-19 spread over the past time.

For specific measures to step up the bilateral ties, the two PMs agreed to implement the outcomes of the online talks between General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Nguyen Phu Trong and Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on June 8, continue close coordination between the two sides in organising activities marking the 30th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties this year, and effectively implement bilateral and multilateral cooperation mechanisms such as the Vietnam-Korea Free Trade Agreement (VKFTA) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in order to soon raise two-way trade value to 100 billion USD in 2023 and 150 billion USD by 2030.

The two sides will handle trade imbalances and facilitate the penetration of Vietnamese goods like agricultural and aquatic products into the Korean market, and encourage Korean businesses to expand investment in Vietnam, prioritising digital technology, electronics, renewable energy and infrastructure development.

Vietnam pledged to create optimal conditions for Korean enterprises as well as foreign investors to run long-term business in the country.

The leaders also consented to maintain and promote effective official development assistance (ODA) cooperation mechanisms, and expand the scale of ODA supply for Vietnam.

The two countries will enhance collaboration in labour, tourism, people-to-people and cultural exchanges and entertainment industry, and support their overseas citizens, especially Vietnamese brides in the RoK.

The PMs also concurred to foster cooperation in international issues and at different forums.

Regarding the East Sea issue, they shared the common vision on maintaining peace and stability, ensuring security, safety and freedom of navigation in the East Sea, settling disputes at sea by peaceful measures, and ensuring rights and legitimate interests of countries in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)./.