The Consulate General of the Republic of Korea on October 3^rd held a ceremony to celebrate the 71^st anniversary of the National Day of the Republic of Korea (RoK).

Korean pupils perform the Vietnamese and Korean national anthems at the ceremony. (Photo: VNA)

Addressing the ceremony, Korean Consul General in Ho Chi Minh Park Noh Wan said that Vietnam and the RoK shared similarities in cultural history with an exchange relationship over the past 800 years, which are being developed by the Vietnamese and Korean leaders and the two peoples.

Since the establishment of official diplomatic relations in 1992, the two sides have become strategic partnership for cooperation and mutual development. The RoK has become the largest investor in Vietnam with a total investment capital of up to USD50 billion.

According to Park Noh Wan, the relations between the RoK and Ho Chi Minh City, as well as surrounding localities, play an important role in the relationship between the two countries.

He said he desired to further promote the relations between Ho Chi Minh city and Korean localities, especially in investment and trade, helping the RoK maintain the leading position in investment in the city.

Celebrating the RoK’s National Day, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh city People’s Committee Le Van Khoa stressed that the relationship between the two countries was developing strongly, making them important partners of each other. “The strongly developed relationship between the two countries has facilitated cooperation in culture, tourism, investment and trade among Vietnamese and Korean localities, including Ho Chi Minh city,” said Vice Chairman Khoa.

According to Mr. Khoa, the RoK is now the third largest investor in Ho Chi Minh city, with over 1,000 projects worth over USD4.3 billion.

He pledged to make favourable conditions for Korean investors in the city, helping foster the good relationship between the two countries.

The RoK is currently the largest investor in Vietnam, as well as one of the leading providers of official development assistance (ODA) for Vietnam. The increasingly growing bilateral trade reported a turnover of USD2.6 billion in 2015./.

( Compiled by BTA )