Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to visit South Korea

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife

At the invitation of Korean Prime Minister Han Duck Soo and his wife, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife will pay an official visit to Korea from June 30 to July 3.

Vietnam and the Republic of Korea established diplomatic relations on December 22, 1992, and established a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022. The two sides promote relations through all channels of the Party, Government, National Assembly, etc.; high-level exchanges are maintained in many flexible forms. The Republic of Korea considers Vietnam a key partner in implementing regional policies, including the Indo-Pacific Strategy and the ASEAN-Korea Solidarity Initiative.

Korean Prime Ministers have visited Vietnam three times. Meanwhile, our Prime Ministers have visited Korea seven times. Vietnam and Korea have cooperation mechanisms in many fields.

Regarding economic cooperation: The two countries have become each other's leading important partners. Korea continues to maintain its position as our number 1 partner in terms of direct investment; number 2 in development cooperation (ODA), tourism; and number 3 in terms of labor and trade.

Regarding trade: In 2023, Vietnam-Korea bilateral trade turnover reached 76.1 billion USD, down 13.5% over the same period last year, of which Vietnam's export turnover reached 23.5 billion USD, down 3.4%. Vietnam's import turnover reached 52.6 billion USD, down 15.5%. Vietnam's trade deficit with Korea was worth 29.2 billion USD, down 23.3% over the same period in 2022.

In the first 4 months of 2024, the total import-export turnover between the two countries reached 25.5 billion USD, up 4% over the same period in 2023. Of which, Vietnam's export turnover to Korea reached 8.4 billion USD, up 10.2%; Vietnam's import turnover from Korea reached 17.1 billion USD, up 6.1% over the same period last year. Vietnam's trade deficit with Korea was 8.7 billion USD, up 2.3%.

Regarding direct investment: Accumulated up to April 2024, Korea is the largest investor with a total registered capital of more than 87 billion USD, 9,957 investment projects from Korean enterprises, with a total registered capital of nearly 87 billion USD, accounting for 25.1% of the total number of projects and 18.25% of the total foreign direct investment registered in Vietnam.

In the first 4 months of 2024 alone, Korea had 118 newly licensed projects with newly registered capital of 856 million USD, ranking 3rd out of 150 countries and territories with newly licensed projects and increased capital (after China and Singapore).

Regarding development cooperation (ODA): Vietnam continues to be the top priority partner for which Korea provides development assistance (receiving about 20% of Korea's total aid). Recently, Korea's total aid to Vietnam annually reached more than 500 million USD, of which 90% is ODA loans and 10% is non-refundable aid.

Vietnam-Korea development cooperation is prioritized in the following areas: urban transport infrastructure; healthcare; education and training; environment; clean energy, information technology...

Regarding ODA loans, the Korean government provides ODA loans to Vietnam through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) under the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM). In June 2023, the two sides signed a cooperation agreement with the Korean Economic Promotion Fund (EDPF) worth 2 billion USD to implement large-scale development investment projects in the fields of transportation and urban infrastructure in Vietnam.

The Vietnamese community living and working in Korea is more than 250,000 people. Korea also has a community of more than 150,000 people in Vietnam. In 2023, the number of Korean tourists to Vietnam reached 3.6 million, ranking first among international visitors to Vietnam; the number of Vietnamese tourists to Korea reached more than 500,000. In the first 4 months of 2024, Korea was still the largest tourist market to Vietnam, with 1.6 million arrivals, accounting for 25.8% of the total number of international visitors to Vietnam.

Currently, 76 provinces, cities and localities of Vietnam have signed cooperation agreements with localities and organizations of Korea. Korean investors are present in 55 localities, most concentrated in Bac Ninh, Hanoi, Dong Nai, Hai Phong, Thai Nguyen and Ho Chi Minh City.

TH (according to VTC News)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/thu-tuong-pham-minh-chinh-sap-tham-han-quoc-385757.html