Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested lifting two-way trade between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) to US$100 billion from US$68 billion in 2019.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and Speaker of the RoK National Assembly
Park Byeong-Seug (Photo: VNA)

During a reception for visiting Speaker of the RoK National Assembly Park Byeong-Seug on November 2, the PM wished that the RoK would buy more Vietnamese products, especially farm produce and consumer goods.

The Vietnamese PM welcomed the visit by the RoK leader since the COVID-19 outbreak and expressed his belief that the visit will be a success, contributing to further deepening bilateral strategic cooperative partnership.

He affirmed that Vietnam consistently follows the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation and diversification of ties, integrating deeper into the world economy, and wishes to further expand its strategic cooperative partnership with the RoK.

According to him, Vietnam is a key partner in the RoK Government’s New Southern Policy while the RoK continues to be Vietnam’s partner of top significance, the largest investor and the second largest trade partner and supplier of official development assistance (ODA), and the leading recipient of Vietnamese workers.

He attributed such results to the support of the top RoK legislator, parliament committees and parliamentarians.

Park, for his part, congratulated Vietnam on achieving the dual goal of fighting the pandemic and achieving positive economic growth.

As the two countries will celebrate the 30th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties in 2022, he said it is a good time to upgrade bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

The host expressed his hope that the RoK NA Speaker and his parliament will continue encouraging Korean firms to enhance investment in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese Government is ready to create favourable conditions for RoK firms to expand business operations and facilitate Vietnamese enterprises’ access to technological transfer and global supply chains by Korean corporations, he said. 

Regarding the further promotion of ODA, the PM hoped that the RoK will continue to support the removal of binding conditions for preferential loans and expand non-refundable aid to Vietnam.

Appreciating the effectiveness of current labour cooperation models, especially seasonal labour between the two countries' localities, PM Phuc asked Speaker Park Byeong-seug and his National Assembly to actively urge the RoK Government to create favourable conditions for new Vietnamese workers to come to the RoK and find solutions to facilitate the granting of visas to Vietnamese short-term labourers so that they soon come to work in the country.

He proposed the top RoK legislator to urge the Ministry of Employment and Labour to soon extend the Memorandum of Understanding on sending and receiving workers.

He also hoped that the RoK National Assembly and authorities will support Vietnamese brides to integrate well into the Korean society and create conditions for Vietnamese-Korean multicultural families to stabilise their lives here.

The two sides need to strengthen coordination on multilateral forums, especially within the framework of the United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC),  and the Mekong-RoK Cooperation, as well as inter-parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) and the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum  (APPF), he said.

PM Phuc asked the RoK to support Vietnam in fulfilling its role as ASEAN Chair in 2020 and as a coordinator of ASEAN-RoK relations for 2021-2024; and continue backing the viewpoints of Vietnam and ASEAN on the East Sea issue.

Agreeing with the host leader’s opinion, Park affirmed that the RoK considers Vietnam a key partner in the New Southern Policy and one of the most important partners in ASEAN.

He said that the RoK side will continue to share experience, transfer technology, and create conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to participate in global value chains of Korean enterprises.

The RoK National Assembly will urge the Korean Government to pay attention to helping Vietnamese agricultural products enter the local market, while promoting ODA projects and concessional loans for Vietnam.

The legislature will propose the RoK Government soon extend the Memorandum of Understanding on sending and receiving Vietnamese labourers, he said, adding that it also pays heed to ensuring the best conditions for the Vietnamese community to live safely and stably in the RoK.

Park stated that his country agreed with Vietnam's stance and position on the East Sea issue, including ensuring security, safety, freedom of navigation, and respect for international law.

Expressing thanks to the Vietnamese Government for facilitating Korean personnel to enter Vietnam amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he suggested that Vietnam soon build a fast entry process for citizens of the two countries. He also hoped that some international routes between the two countries will be soon resumed.

He added that some Korean banks are looking forward to receiving licences to do business in Vietnam so that they can support Korean businesses here