President calls for new 'Miracle on Red River' as Seoul-Hanoi partnership expands

President Lee Jae Myung and Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung pose before their one-on-one talks in Hanoi, Thursday. The meeting was part of Lee’s series of engagements with the Southeast Asian country’s collective leadership during his first state visit. Yonhap

HANOI — President Lee Jae Myung met with Vietnam’s second- and third-highest ranked political leaders in Hanoi, Thursday, completing a full round of meetings with the Southeast Asian country’s collective leadership in his first state visit there.

The president held separate talks with Prime Minister Le Minh Hung and National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man, a day after his bilateral summit with President To Lam, who concurrently serves as general secretary of the ruling Communist Party.

The engagements reflect the breadth of a partnership that has grown dramatically since diplomatic ties were established in 1992 across a range of sectors, such as politics, economy, commerce, technology, culture and people-to-people exchanges.

Bilateral trade has since increased 190-fold, while people-to-people exchanges have grown 2,400-fold. Vietnam is now Korea's third-largest trading partner, while Korea remains Vietnam's largest foreign investor. Vietnam recorded an economic growth rate of 8.02 percent in 2025, its highest in 15 years.

In this regard, Lee said Vietnam’s success is also Korea’s shared success during a meeting with the prime minister.

“Korea, as a trusted partner, wishes to stand together with Vietnam in achieving its development goals,” Lee added, pointing to its national vision of becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income developed country by 2045.

President Lee Jae Myung and Vietnamese National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man shake hands before their one-on-one talks in Hanoi, Thursday. The meeting was part of Lee’s series of engagements with the Southeast Asian country’s collective leadership during his first state visit. Yonhap

The two countries, during Wednesday’s summit, struck deals on cooperation on nuclear energy, transportation infrastructure and power supply, which Lee described as new growth engines.

"I hope that through strengthened strategic cooperation in new growth engines, we can jointly create a new 'Miracle on the Red River,'" the president said, asking for support to ensure “a stable environment where Korean companies can invest with confidence.”

He drew a deliberate parallel to Korea's own development story, invoking the "Miracle on the Han River" — the term used to describe Korea's rapid postwar economic transformation along the banks of Seoul's waterway — and expressing hope that deeper cooperation could help Vietnam achieve a similar leap.

He expressed hope for “an open exchange of views on ways to further deepen economic cooperation and promote mutual prosperity,” in line with the highest level of the bilateral partnership.

The prime minister said Lee’s state visit demonstrates “strong interest of the Korean government and the president concerning bilateral relations with Vietnam.”

“I am confident that this visit will provide new momentum to make bilateral relations more substantive, effective and comprehensive,” he said.

“We hope that Korea will continue to cooperate with and support Vietnam in achieving its development goals.”

He asked Lee to convey his invitation for Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok to visit, which Lee accepted.

In a meeting with the National Assembly chairman, Lee said the deepening bilateral partnership was made possible “with consistent support” from Hanoi’s National Assembly, noting it “plays a key role in guiding national development and institutional reform.”

“I hope that under your leadership, the National Assembly will continue to actively support the steady advancement of bilateral relations,” the president said.

The chairman noted Lee's first state visit “reflects the high importance you and your government attach to relations with Vietnam.”

He added, “I am truly pleased to meet you in person during this state visit and to convey my congratulations directly.”