On June 22, President Yoon began his state visit to Vietnam with a summit with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong. Afterwards, he held individual meetings with high-ranking officials such as the Communist Party's General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue on the development of bilateral relations.
This photo essay looks back on both trips through photos.
By Park Hye Ri
Photos = Office of the President
President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee on June 19 arrive at Paris-Orly Airport and inspect an honor guard.
President Yoon Suk Yeol on June 20 walks around the streets of Paris wearing a cap and T-shirt that pays tribute to the naval corvette ROKS Cheonan, strolling around Monceau Park in front of his hotel for about 30 minutes.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (left) and French President Emmanuel Macron on June 20 hold their bilateral summit at the French presidential office Elysee Palace in Paris. Both leaders agreed to expand mutual investment centered on cutting-edge technologies such as secondary batteries and expand cooperation in a multi-layered and groundbreaking way based on value solidarity.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (third row, sixth from left) on June 20 in Paris takes a photo with participants at a talk on future innovative generations of both countries at Station F, the world's largest startup campus. About 300 young people from Korea and France attended the event.
First lady Kim Keon Hee (left) on June 20 attends a luncheon hosted by French counterpart Brigitte Macron at the French presidential office Elysee Palace in Paris. First lady Kim said, "Let's better understand each other and expand exchange as both countries are highly interested in each other's culture and arts." First lady Macron responded by saying, "Let's cooperate so that high-quality works can be displayed at the Centre Pompidou's forthcoming branch in Seoul."
President Yoon Suk Yeol on June 21 greets attendees at an official reception for the 2030 Busan World Expo at a sports center in the Paris commune Issy-les-Moulineaux. Delegations there received a commemorative stamp packet featuring K-pop sensation BTS, who is promotional ambassador for Busan's bid, and keychains that the first lady helped design with the phrase "Busan is ready."
President Yoon Suk Yeol (middle) and first lady Kim Keon Hee (seventh from left) on June 22 take a photo with Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan (fifth from left) and singers from Korea and Vietnam at a cultural exchange evening event at Vietnam National Convention Center in Hanoi. Among the 3,000 people attending were businesspeople and government officials from both countries, Vietnamese fans of Hallyu (Korean Wave) and those learning Korean, and Koreans studying in Vietnam. The event sought to raise cultural understanding between the people of both nations and promote friendship between their future generations.
President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee on June 23 lay a wreath at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi. Red ribbons inscribed with the phrase "Republic of Korea President Yoon Suk Yeol" in both Korean and Vietnamese were hung on the facility's outer walls.
President Yoon Suk Yeol on June 23 shakes hands with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi. During their bilateral summit, both leaders agreed to strengthen cooperation in supply chains of core minerals including rare earth minerals and speed up economic cooperation to achieve their goal of USD 150 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, as well as recognition of each side's international driver licenses. In a joint news released following their talks, the two sides signed 17 agreements and memorandums of understanding including one on the adoption of an action plan to launch their comprehensive strategic partnership.
President Yoon Suk Yeol (left) and the Communist Party of Vietnam's General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on June 23 hold their first in-person talks at the party's Office of the Central Committee. President Yoon said, "Human exchange and educational training must continue toward cutting-edge technologies for new cooperation over the next 30 years." Secretary Trong responded by saying, "Korea, which continues to grow by leaps and bounds, is the optimal model Vietnam wants to emulate, and I hope Vietnamese youth learn more from Korea."
President Yoon Suk Yeol (second from left) and first lady Kim Keon Hee (left) on June 24 take a photo with Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong and his wife at Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. Both presidential couples had breakfast at a nearby restaurant and pledged to further deepen and develop the 30-year friendship and partnership between both countries.
President Yoon Suk Yeol on June 24 listens to Vietnamese President Vo Van Thuong's explanation while walking around Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi.
hrhr@korea.kr
