National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn speaks at a meeting with Korean friends in Seoul on Sunday. — VNA/VNS Photo

SEOUL — National Assembly (NA) President Trần Thanh Mẫn met with more than 70 prominent figures, intellectuals, and representatives of associations, people’s organisations, businesses and non-governmental organisations from the Republic of Korea (RoK) operating in Việt Nam on September 6, as part of his official visit to the country.

The Seoul event was jointly organised by the Việt Nam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) and the Vietnamese Embassy in the RoK.

Speaking at the meeting, NA President Mẫn stressed that Korean non-governmental organisations, associations, scientists and businesses have contributed significantly to major achievements recorded in Việt Nam-RoK relations over the past years.

Noting that there remains considerable room for cooperation between the two countries, the top Vietnamese legislator expressed his hope that through the meeting, the RoK-Việt Nam Friendship Association, the association of Koreans who love Việt Nam, non-governmental organisations, businesses, universities, individuals, entrepreneurs and scientists would continue working with VUFO and the Việt Nam-RoK Friendship Association to promote economic cooperation and cultural exchanges, and to bring the images of the RoK to Việt Nam and vice versa.

The NA President called on the two countries to pay greater attention to the Korean community in Việt Nam and the Vietnamese community in the RoK, and to strengthen cooperation in science and technology, education and training, healthcare, strategic supply chains, semiconductors, renewable energy, clean energy, digital transformation and artificial intelligence (AI). He also expressed his hope that Korean scientists, entrepreneurs and businesses would continue exploring opportunities to invest in major projects in Việt Nam.

He also requested that, in the coming time, VUFO coordinate with the Korean side to step up promotion of the images of Việt Nam and its people in the RoK, as well as those of the RoK in Việt Nam. The leader called for cultural and people-to-people exchanges to be translated into practical cooperation agreements that deliver tangible benefits to both countries.

At the meeting, the Korean friends spoke highly of Việt Nam’s achievements in recent years and expressed their belief that increasingly substantive and in-depth cooperation between the Vietnamese and Korean National Assemblies would provide a solid foundation for the development of bilateral people-to-people exchange activities.

Chairman of the RoK-Việt Nam Friendship Association Lee Shin-jae stressed that the association would actively contribute to bilateral cooperation, with a commitment to turning words into practical actions.

In the coming time, the association will continue expanding the scope of its activities, moving beyond traditional cultural and humanitarian exchanges to new areas such as AI, infrastructure and logistics, thereby strongly promoting economic exchanges.

Chairman of the Korea – Việt Nam Economic and Cultural Association (KOVECA) Kwon Sung Taek affirmed that the association would actively expand cultural and youth exchanges, helping future generations of the two countries become key forces in nurturing their strong friendship. It will also continue supporting multicultural families, students studying abroad, the Vietnamese community in the RoK and the Korean community in Việt Nam so that they can serve as solid bridges between the two countries. — VNA/VNS