Diplomacy Journal Lee Sung Jun | President Lee Jae-myung conducted an official state visit to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from April 22 to 23, 2025. On April 22, he held a summit meeting with General Secretary To Lam of the Communist Party of Vietnam — who concurrently serves as President and stands as the country's highest-ranking leader. The meeting took place at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi.

In a joint press statement, President Lee declared: "Amid supply chain instability stemming from recent tensions in the Middle East, we share the recognition that the need for cooperation between our two nations has grown even greater. We have agreed to collaborate more closely to strengthen energy security and stabilize our supply chains."

The two leaders agreed to deepen strategic cooperation across the energy sector — including nuclear power — and infrastructure fields such as railways and new cities. They set a joint target of expanding bilateral trade, which reached USD 94.6 billion in 2024, to USD 150 billion by 2030.

Prior to the summit, President Lee paid tribute at the mausoleum of Ho Chi Minh, revered as Vietnam's founding father. He subsequently joined General Secretary To Lam for a dinner at the Presidential Palace.
The meeting marked the first encounter between the two leaders in eight months, following General Secretary To Lam's state visit to South Korea in August 2024. To Lam was the first foreign head of state to make a state visit to Korea under the current administration; President Lee's trip to Hanoi, in turn, was the first state visit by a South Korean leader since Vietnam's new leadership assumed office this month.
"This fact alone, I believe, clearly demonstrates the special relationship between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea," President Lee remarked.

Summit Highlights: Trade, Energy, and Infrastructure

In his opening remarks at the expanded summit session, President Lee stated: "Our countries are each other's top-three trading partners, and South Korea is Vietnam's largest investor. Over 10,000 Korean companies have entered the Vietnamese market, contributing to the economic growth of both nations and to Vietnam's industrial development."
General Secretary To Lam added: "I am pleased that our two countries have built a relationship of close friendship and trustworthy partnership grounded in strategic cooperation and mutual understanding."
The summit produced 12 memoranda of understanding (MOUs). Among the most significant was an MOU to review cooperation in Vietnam's nuclear power development — described by the Blue House as laying the groundwork for South Korean companies to secure new nuclear energy project rights. A separate MOU addressed financial cooperation for the construction funding of Vietnam's nuclear power plants. Vietnam is currently pursuing the construction of two nuclear power plants in Ninh Thuận Province, each valued at approximately 1.2 trillion Korean won (roughly USD 830 million).

On infrastructure, President Lee announced: "A contract for the export of South Korean railway vehicles for Ho Chi Minh City's urban railway system will be signed tomorrow. Through Vietnam's new city and new airport projects — central pillars of its national development agenda — we will forge many exemplary cases of bilateral infrastructure cooperation."

Hyundai Rotem is set to sign a contract valued at 5.1 trillion Korean won (approximately USD 3.5 billion) with Vietnam's Tac Group for the export of unmanned electric trains. South Korean companies are also expected to participate in the 1.1 trillion won Southeast New City development project and the 100 billion won Jabin New Airport construction.

In the joint press release, General Secretary To Lam stated: "Vietnam welcomes expanded investment by South Korean companies in priority sectors, including infrastructure development, smart cities, semiconductors, large-scale AI data centers, nuclear energy, smart ports, and next-generation port construction. The Vietnamese government will create an open, transparent, and business-friendly investment environment to ensure that South Korean companies can invest in Vietnam stably and sustainably."

State Dinner: A Toast to Friendship

A state dinner followed the summit at the State Guest House in Hanoi, where both leaders greeted each other in the other's language as a gesture of warmth and mutual respect. General Secretary To Lam opened his welcome address with the Korean greeting "An-nyeong-ha-se-yo" (Hello) and concluded with "Gom-ap-seum-ni-da" (Thank you). President Lee responded in Vietnamese with "Xin chào" (Hello) and proposed a toast with "Chúc sức khỏe" — meaning "To your health."

A Relationship Transformed: Thirty Years of Progress

According to South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other diplomatic sources, Vietnam holds a uniquely important place in Korean foreign policy — and the sentiment is reciprocated.

As recently as the early 1990s, the two countries had no formal diplomatic relations and virtually no bilateral exchange. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of individuals on both sides, diplomatic ties were officially established in 1992. In the three decades since, the relationship has advanced remarkably across politics, economics, culture, and people-to-people exchange.

Trade volume, which stood at approximately USD 500 million at the time of normalization, has grown more than 200-fold — reaching USD 95 billion by 2025 — making South Korea and Vietnam each other's third-largest trading partners globally. South Korea remains Vietnam's largest foreign investor, with over 10,000 Korean companies actively operating in the Vietnamese market and contributing to Vietnam's ambitious targets of achieving middle-income status by 2030 and developed-nation status by 2045.

People-to-people ties are equally vibrant. In 2025, approximately five million citizens from both countries visited each other's nations. Vietnamese nationals residing in South Korea number around 340,000, while Korean nationals residing in Vietnam reach approximately 200,000. Both peoples have embraced each other's cultures — from K-pop to phở — with genuine enthusiasm.

Building on these milestones, the two countries elevated their relationship to a "Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership" in 2022, marking the 30th anniversary of diplomatic normalization. In August 2025, South Korea welcomed General Secretary To Lam as the first state guest of the new administration, reinforcing a shared commitment to developing the bilateral relationship in a more comprehensive and forward-looking manner.

Looking Ahead: New Frontiers of Cooperation

With the goal of reaching USD 150 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, the two countries are broadening the scope of economic cooperation beyond its traditional manufacturing base into service sectors such as distribution, finance, information technology, and cultural content. They are also deepening cooperation in economic security domains, including digital transformation, green transition, critical mineral development, and supply chain resilience.

Vietnam is also a key partner in addressing major regional and international challenges. The two countries are working in close coordination to strengthen a substantive and strategic partnership within the frameworks of Korea-ASEAN relations and Korea-Mekong cooperation.

The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Vietnam has pledged to play a creative and dynamic role in ensuring that South Korea — aspiring to become a responsible global powerhouse capable of responding pragmatically to shifts in the world order — and Vietnam — aiming to become a high-income developed nation by 2045 — can continue to achieve mutually beneficial growth together. The embassy has also reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the interests of Korean citizens and businesses in Vietnam and to actively advancing the development of the Korean community in the country.