HCMC – South Korean President Moon Jae In said on September 21 that South Korea would provide Vietnam with at least one million Covid-19 vaccine doses next month.
President Moon announced the vaccine donation plan during his talks with Vietnamese State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly’s 76th session, South Korean presidential spokesperson Park Kyung Mee said.
President Moon said the two countries had tried to overcome the Covid-19 pandemic together from the initial stage and shared medical equipment, the local media reported.
The vaccine donation to Vietnam will be South Korea’s first direct provision of the vaccine to a foreign nation, except for its financial support through the COVAX Facility.
Moon and Phuc agreed that the two countries have deepened their cooperation in various sectors, including politics, economy and people-to-people exchanges.
The South Korean President sought to further boost the strategic partnership with Vietnam, especially in the digital economy and finance sectors, and expected the bilateral trade between the two countries to reach US$100 billion in 2023.
He hailed Vietnam’s economic development despite the Covid-19 pandemic.
President Moon offered support to Vietnam for the safety and protection of the South Korean people and enterprises in Vietnam.
For his part, President Phuc thanked South Korea for donating Covid-19 vaccines to Vietnam. He expected the two sides would make more efforts to overcome the difficulties triggered by the pandemic to further develop their bilateral relations.
The two countries will celebrate the 30th anniversary of their diplomatic relations next year. In 2009, the countries upgraded their relationship to a strategic cooperative partnership.
President Phuc suggested South Korea continue increasing investment in Vietnam besides transferring technologies to Vietnamese businesses. Vietnam will continue creating favorable conditions for South Korean firms to do business in the country, ensuring safety for the workforce of these firms and protecting the health of the South Korean people and enterprises in Vietnam.
Early last month, the Consulate General of South Korea in HCMC announced that the South Korean Government had donated 7.5 million syringes to HCMC to support the city’s Covid vaccination program.
On August 5, the Overseas Korean Association in HCMC and the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry in HCMC and officials of the Consulate General of South Korea in HCMC donated VND57.5 million to support the city in the fight against Covid.
Both the South Korean Government and the South Korean community in HCMC have committed to helping the city win over the pandemic.
