Deputy Prime Minister Lê Minh Khái (right) in talks with Director-General of Samsung Việt Nam Complex Choi Joo-ho. — VNA/VNS Photo Minh Đức

HÀ NỘI — Deputy Prime Minister Lê Minh Khái has confirmed that the Government backs Samsung's long-term business strategy in Việt Nam, during a reception for business executives attended by Director-General of Samsung Việt Nam Complex Choi Joo-ho in Hà Nội on Monday.

Informing his guests that he is to visit the Republic of Korea within the framework of the bilateral dialogue mechanism on economic cooperation at the deputy prime ministerial level, Khái said that during the visit, he and his RoK counterpart will evaluate the outcome of the economic partnership between the two countries since their previous dialogue in 2019.

Samsung is a big investor in Việt Nam and the Vietnamese Government wants to listen to its opinions in order to discuss with the RoK side how to create more favourable conditions for the firm to operate effectively, the Deputy PM said.

Choi Joo-ho told the host that currently, Samsung has six production factories, one research centre and one sales entity in Việt Nam.

Apart from mobile phone and household appliance products, Samsung also manufactures parts for televisions and telephones, he said. The firm currently employs 110,000 people in Việt Nam. According to Choi, so far, Samsung has disbursed 100 per cent of its registered capital of US$17.7 billion in Việt Nam.

He said that during the fourth wave of COVID-19 in Việt Nam, the firm received great support from Vietnamese localities, adding that its factories in the north resumed production in August and those in the south have operated stably since November.

Last year, Samsung’s revenue reached $56.7 billion. This figure is expected to rise 15 per cent this year, he said.

The executive thanked the Vietnamese Government for assisting the firm over the years, expressing hope that Việt Nam will continue to maintain safe and flexible adaptation to the pandemic to ensure that production is not interrupted.

Choi gave some proposals regarding the global minimum corporate tax in line with the regulations of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Deputy PM Khái pledged that Việt Nam will work to access more vaccine sources to enable businesses to operate safely in the new normal situation, while urging enterprises, including Samsung, to continue to coordinate with local government to effectively control the pandemic for long-term operations.

He lauded Samsung’s investment in a $220-million research and development centre in Việt Nam, which is scheduled for completion in 2022, affirming that the Vietnamese Government supports the firm’s long-term business strategy in Việt Nam. He asked Samsung to report its difficulties to the Vietnamese authorised agency for timely solutions.

Stressing Việt Nam’s determination to deliver on its commitments to businesses, Deputy PM Khái said that Việt Nam wants to listen to feedback from the business community in response to changes in policies. — VNS