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| ▲ South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol (L) and first lady Kim Keon Hee disembark Air Force One upon arriving at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on June 22, 2023. (Yonhap) |
Yoon-Vietnam
Yoon arrives in Vietnam for state visit
By Lee Haye-ah
HANOI, June 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in Hanoi on Thursday for a three-day state visit focused on expanding economic cooperation with the Southeast Asian nation.
Yoon is scheduled to hold a summit with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong on Friday and discuss ways to deepen the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership established between the two countries last year.
He will hold separate talks with Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Vuong Dinh Hue, chairman of Vietnam's National Assembly, and also attend a state dinner.
Yoon's office said the visit would focus on strengthening economic cooperation with South Korea's third-largest trading partner, with four different economic events planned, including a bilateral partnership fair, a luncheon with South Korean businesspeople in Vietnam and a business forum.
"Through this state visit, we plan to check various institutional bases to enable more active economic activities between the two countries and expand the horizon of bilateral cooperation to new areas, such as critical mineral supply chains, new and renewable energy, innovative science and technology, and smart cities," Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo told reporters last week.
A 205-member business delegation is accompanying Yoon on the visit, the largest yet under the current administration, including Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won and Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung.
This is Yoon's first bilateral visit to a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
He is also scheduled to meet with Korean residents in Vietnam, visit a Korean language center and attend a cultural event.
First lady Kim Keon Hee is accompanying him on the visit, the second leg of a two-nation tour that earlier took the president and the first lady to France.
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