President Lee Jae-myung, currently on a state visit to Vietnam, held a deep discussion on economic cooperation with key business leaders from both countries on the 23rd in Hanoi, local time. At the Korea-Vietnam Business Forum held at the Hanoi Hotel today, core figures of the Korean business community attended in large numbers to explore the direction of future cooperation. Vietnamese officials who engaged with Korean business giants such as Lee Jae-yong, chairman of Samsung Electronics; Ku Kwang-mo, chairman of LG Group; Choi Tae-won, chairman of SK Group; and Park Ji-won, chairman of Doosan Enerbility, strongly expressed their willingness to cooperate. Representatives from the Vietnamese side, including Le Ngoc Sun, chairman of PetroVietnam; Dang Hoang An, chairman of EVN; Dang Ngoc Hoa, chairman of Vietnam Airlines; and Phong Quang Hiep, chairman of PetroVietnam Chemical, actively exchanged opinions on major agenda items.
President Lee emphasized during a pre-arranged meeting that in a crisis where global economic uncertainty is maximized, the economic bond between Korea and Vietnam is more important than ever. He particularly stressed that strengthening supply chain links in energy fields such as rare earths and urea solution, which are essential conditions for the development of advanced industries, is an urgent task. Additionally, he highlighted the need for expanding power infrastructure, explaining that building high-efficiency power distribution networks such as LNG power plants and nuclear power plants is essential to support Vietnam's stable industrial environment. President Lee added that the business people gathered today should become the cornerstone for opening new horizons for cooperation.
Prime Minister Le Minh Khung of Vietnam, in his welcome speech, emphasized that both countries must achieve mutual growth by strengthening the substantive linkage between their enterprises. He requested that Korean companies elevate their investment in Vietnam beyond quantitative expansion to a qualitative level. In particular, he made a concrete proposal to increase investments in high-value-added fields such as advanced technology, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and clean energy, as well as to strengthen technology transfer. This shows a direction aiming not at simple trade cooperation but at the integration of the entire industrial ecosystem and a virtuous cycle through technology sharing.
Business leaders also revealed their active willingness to cooperate through this forum. When asked by the press about his impressions of visits to India and Vietnam, Chairman Lee Jae-yong gave a firm answer that businesspeople must speak in terms of results. Chairman Ku Kwang-mo stated that he hopes cooperation between the two countries leads to qualitative development beyond the quantitative aspect. Chairman Park Ji-won emphasized that Doosan Enerbility is pursuing a nuclear power plant construction project in Vietnam and that he will explain the company's outstanding performance well at today's forum. These statements by the enterprises show a will to build an industrial base and make substantial contributions to the regional economy, going beyond simple foreign exchange transactions.