State President Lương Cường and President of the Republic of Korea (RoK) Lee Jae Myung held talks in Gyeongju on Thursday. — VNA/VNS Photo Lâm Khánh

GYEONGJU — Vietnamese State President Lương Cường held talks with RoK President Lee Jae Myung in Gyeongju on Thursday afternoon, while Cường is in the Republic of Korea (RoK) to attend the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week 2025.

At the talks, Lee said that the RoK continues to consider Việt Nam a key partner in implementing its foreign policies in the region, and emphasised that President Cường's working trip is of great significance for cooperation towards peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region.

The RoK President congratulated Việt Nam on its development achievements, including its current economic growth of over 7 per cent. He also confirmed that the RoK is ready to continue accompanying Việt Nam in the next stages of its development.

For his part, President Cường sincerely thanked Lee, the government and the people of the RoK for their warm, friendly and thoughtful reception, and conveyed the greetings and warm regards of Party General Secretary Tô Lâm and other senior leaders of Việt Nam to the RoK President.

The Vietnamese leader said he was pleased to see that after more than 30 years of diplomatic relations, the ties between the two countries have continued to be consolidated and developed. Việt Nam and the RoK have become reliable partners, closely cooperating at the strategic level, and are close friends, understanding each other, he added.

Việt Nam consistently attaches importance to its relationship with the RoK and hopes that the cooperation between the two countries will continue to see new, more substantial, effective and sustainable changes in all fields, the President said.

The two leaders agreed to continue promoting delegation exchanges and exchanges at all levels through various channels, effectively coordinate the implementation of existing cooperation mechanisms and promote the substantive implementation of signed cooperation documents between the two countries, especially the agreements reached during the State visit to the RoK by General Secretary Tô Lâm in August.

They also consented to promote mutually beneficial economic cooperation, in line with the development goals of both sides, creating a major and substantive shift in cooperation.

President Cường suggested the two sides coordinate on measures to rapidly reach the bilateral trade target of US$150 billion by 2030 in a balanced and sustainable manner. He confirmed that Việt Nam will create favourable conditions for RoK enterprises to confidently invest long term in the country.

Meanwhile, Lee said that the RoK continues to consider Việt Nam an important strategic partner in economic, trade and investment cooperation, and pledged to increase quotas and expand the industries receiving Vietnamese workers.

He agreed to cooperate in technology transfer and the development of supporting industries in Việt Nam and continue supporting RoK enterprises to expand investment in Việt Nam, especially in important areas such as infrastructure, energy and new urban construction.

The two leaders promised to implement cooperation in science, technology, innovation, digital transformation and workforce development as a new pillar in bilateral relations. They also agreed to step up educational, cultural and people-to-people collaboration to create deeper connections and understanding.

President Cường proposed the RoK side continue to protect the legitimate rights and create favourable conditions for the Vietnamese community in the country, so that they can feel secure living, studying and working long term in the RoK.

Also within the framework of the talks, the two leaders discussed international and regional issues of mutual concern. The Vietnamese President congratulated the RoK on successfully organising APEC Economic Leaders’ Week 2025, and expressed his hope that the East Asian country would support and coordinate with Việt Nam to successfully organise APEC Economic Leaders’ Week 2027.

The two sides agreed to closely cooperate and support each other in regional and international forums of mutual interest, and jointly promote the early upgrade of the ASEAN-Korea Free Trade Agreement and the implementation of the Mekong-RoK Summit in the near future.

The two sides shared a common strategic vision on maintaining peace and stability in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), as well as ensuring legitimate and legal rights in accordance with international law and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Earlier the same day, President Cường attended the "Vietnam Day", co-organised in Gyeongju city by Gyeongsangbuk province, the Republic of Korea (RoK)’s Saemaul Undong Foundation, and the Vietnamese Embassy in the RoK to mark the 20th anniversary of the internationalisation of the Saemaul Undong (New Village) Movement. — VNA/VNS