President Lee: "South Korea and Vietnam Are Key Partners... We Will Expand Cooperation in Nuclear Power, Infrastructure, and Supply Chains"

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[The Financial News, Seoul·Hanoi (Vietnam) = Reporters Sung Seok-woo and Choi Jong-geun] President Lee Jae Myung, who is on a state visit to Vietnam, said on the 22nd (local time) that "during this visit, I will meet with Vietnamese leaders to expand cooperation in strategic areas such as nuclear power, infrastructure, and science and technology innovation, and to pursue deeper cooperation on global issues including supply chain stability, sustainable growth, and climate change response."
In his opening remarks at a meeting with the Korean community held at a hotel in Hanoi that day, Lee said, "South Korea and Vietnam are key partners who cooperate across all fields," and added that the two countries would broaden cooperation in the areas mentioned above.
Lee noted that relations between the two countries were upgraded to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2022, marking the 30th anniversary of diplomatic ties. "We are each among the other’s top three trading partners, and trade volume last year reached $98.5 billion," he said. "South Korea is Vietnam’s largest investor, with 10,000 companies operating here. Through this visit, we aim to develop our current top-level partnership into something even more future-oriented and strategic."
He also stressed the significance of the visit in diplomatic terms. "After our government took office last year, To Lam became the first foreign head of state to make a state visit to South Korea. This time, after Vietnam’s new leadership took office, I am the first state guest to visit," he said. "That alone shows the special relationship between Vietnam and South Korea."
Lee also placed special emphasis on the Korean community in Vietnam. "The Korean community in Vietnam, which has grown to about 200,000 people, is the largest in ASEAN and the fifth-largest in the world," he said. "From cultural and sports figures, expatriate workers, small business owners, young people, entrepreneurs, students, and senior members of the community, I believe the sweat and dedication of all of you have built the strong South Korea-Vietnam relationship we see today."
He added, "The 100,000 multicultural families in South Korea and Vietnam are a precious foundation that connects the two countries by blood." He continued, "To build a more inclusive Republic of Korea, I will do my utmost to carefully address the difficulties faced by multicultural families abroad and resolve them as quickly as possible."
Lee also spoke directly about the difficulties faced by overseas Koreans. "I instructed the embassy and consulate to investigate all the hardships overseas Koreans are facing and what they want to tell the Korean government," he said. "The issues raised by Korean communities around the world are generally similar, including support for Korean language schools, visa problems, communication with consulates and embassies, and support for Korean-language textbooks." He added, "The Korean community in Vietnam likely has things it wants to tell me as well."
west@fnnews.com Sung Seok-woo Choi Jong-geun Reporter