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Vietnam’s leader, To Lam, hosted South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Hanoi on Wednesday, with both countries announcing a dozen cooperation agreements covering technology, innovation and nuclear power development.
South Korea remains Vietnam’s largest source of foreign investment and one of its leading trade partners, with bilateral trade exceeding $90 billion last year.
Speaking during the meeting at the presidential palace, Lam said Lee’s visit reflected the high level of political trust between the two nations. He added that Vietnam was open to new South Korean investments and expansion of existing projects, particularly in infrastructure, smart cities, semiconductors, artificial intelligence data centres, nuclear energy and smart seaports.
“Vietnam welcomes South Korean companies to make new investments and expand existing projects, with a focus on the development of infrastructure, smart cities, semiconductors, AI data centres, nuclear power, smart seaports,” the Vietnamese leader said.
The meeting marked the second between the two leaders in less than a year, following Lam’s trip to Seoul in August.
Lee said the agreements came at a time of rising geopolitical uncertainty and growing technological competition, expressing hope that both countries would build on the progress already achieved through cooperation between their people, businesses and governments.
Vietnam is seeking increased South Korean investment in infrastructure, advanced electronics manufacturing, semiconductors, artificial intelligence and renewable energy.
Among the deals signed was a framework for a joint master plan on science, technology and innovation. Other agreements covered digital cooperation, intellectual property rights and nuclear power plant development.
Lam, who recently assumed the presidency while retaining his position as Communist Party chief, has been promoting a new growth strategy centred on digital transformation and technological advancement as Vietnam works to avoid the so-called middle-income trap.
Vietnam and South Korea have set a target of raising bilateral trade to $150 billion by 2030.
South Korean electronics giant Samsung remains Vietnam’s largest foreign corporate investor, with more than $23 billion invested in the country, according to Vietnam’s finance ministry. Reports also indicate the company plans to invest an additional $4 billion in a chip packaging facility in northern Thai Nguyen province.
