Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung returned to Hanoi Tuesday, wrapping up a visit to the Republic of Korea (RoK) which included attending a summit to mark 20 years of ASEAN-RoK relations.

Son said that PM Dung and the RoK’s top leaders, including President Lee Myung-bak, PM Han Seung-soo, and National Assembly Speaker Kim Hyong-o, each agreed that the two countries should work toward a strategic partnership for peace, stability and development in the region and the world.

The leaders discussed measures to step up relations not only in trade, investment, education, culture and labor, but also in national security and defense.

According to Son, the RoK agreed to expand its official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam and agreed to help Vietnam deal with its trade deficit.

The two countries’ leaders also agreed to support each other’s citizens, including a recent influx of Vietnamese women who have married RoK men and are now living in Korea.

During the visit, the two sides signed several agreements including a revised framework agreement on nonrefundable aid, a cooperative deal on cooking safety, and the development of an online Vietnamese government database between the Vietnamese Government Office and the RoK’s Ministry for Administration and Public Security.

The business communities of both countries also signed nearly 20 contracts worth billions of US dollars during PM Dung’s visit.

Leaders of several RoK enterprises confirmed their determination to continue investing in Vietnam, particularly in the fields of finance, energy, steel, infrastructure construction, real estate and transport.

Source: VNA