Vietnam, RoK step up partnership across multiple sectors

Politburo member, Party Central Committee Secretary and President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee Do Van Chien had meetings with high-ranking leaders of the Republic of Korea (RoK) and held working sessions with several organisations and institutes there on July 31 to strengthen bilateral ties and expand cooperation across multiple areas.

The events took place as Chien was leading a high-ranking VFF delegation for a working trip to the RoK.

At the Government Complex Seoul, RoK Prime Minister Kim Min Seok underscored the significance of the visit at a time when Seoul seeks to develop the bilateral cooperation commensurate with the Vietnam RoK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. He praised the remarkable progress in the bilateral relations over the past three decades, and expressed his hopes for deeper collaboration in strategic industries such as nuclear power and high-speed rail.

He highlighted the special relationship between the two nations, noting their shared values and the growing Vietnamese community in the RoK who serve as an important bridge between the countries. He also laid stress on the need to enhance people-to-people exchanges and reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring safety for Vietnamese citizens in the country.

The RoK will host the APEC 2025 KOREA this October and hopes to welcome Vietnam’s State President at the high-level event, he added.

Chien, for his part, briefed the host on Vietnam’s recent achievements, highlighting that the country’s GDP growth exceeded 7% in 2024, making it the world’s 32nd-largest economy. Vietnam, he said, has also completed a major restructuring of its central and local administrative apparatus, a historic and strategic move towards building a modern, efficient, people-centred governance system.

He called on the Korean government to enhance high-level exchanges, promote flexible engagement mechanisms at multilateral forums, and boost large-scale infrastructure projects in transportation, energy, digital transformation, and climate change adaptation. He also urged the RoK to expand non-refundable aid, especially in research and development, and innovation, while introducing support policies for the Vietnamese community, helping them better integrate into the Korean society and contribute to its development.

At the meeting with Deputy Speaker of the RoK National Assembly Lee Hack Young (Photo: VNA)

Meeting with Deputy Speaker of the RoK National Assembly Lee Hack Young, Chien highlighted Vietnam’s constitutional reforms and legal modernisation efforts aimed at aligning national legislation with international norms and supporting its development goals of becoming a modern, upper-middle-income country by 2030 and a developed, high-income nation by 2045.

He stressed the importance of stronger parliamentary collaboration, particularly in sharing legislative experiences, expanding youth and friendship exchanges, and supporting policies that protect the legitimate rights of Vietnamese citizens in the RoK, including members of multicultural families.

Vietnam continues implementing its foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation and development, standing ready to cooperate with the RoK National Assembly to promote the Vietnam RoK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in a substantive and effective fashion, he underscored.

Lee hailed the robust development of the bilateral relations, noting that Vietnam is the RoK’s third-largest trading partner, with huge potential for further cooperation. He highlighted the establishment of the RoK Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Association at the 22nd RoK National Assembly as a platform to foster closer cooperation, making it on par with the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

The same day, the delegation met with Kwon Gi Seob, Chairman of the Economic, Social and Labour Council (ELSC), during which both sides agreed to finalise a memorandum of understanding by the fourth quarter of 2025 to enhance information sharing on labour issues and ensure the protection of workers’ rights.

On July 30-31, the delegation also held working sessions with Global Knowledge Exchange & Development Centre under the Korea Development Institute, met with the Chairman of Gyeonggi Provincial Council, and visited Pangyo Techno Valley and the National Agricultural Cooperative Federation.