While receiving RoK President Lee Myung-bak in Hanoi on October 21, Mr Dung said that Vietnam will provide more incentives to encourage RoK businesses to invest in railway line projects and to increase two-way trade to USD20 billion in the coming years.

He welcomed the results of talks between Mr Lee and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Minh Triet and the release of a Vietnam-RoK joint statement raising their bilateral relationship to a strategic cooperation partnership.

The Vietnamese government will work closely with the RoK government to realise the joint statement so as to bring practical benefits to both countries, said Mr Dung.

He proposed that the two countries work on dialogue mechanisms for politics, security and national defence, and promote cooperation in economics, trade and investment. He also proposed that the RoK government increase ODA to Vietnam, especially in transport infrastructure and education development and create conditions for Vietnamese nationals living in the RoK to integrate well into the local community.

For his part, Mr Lee affirmed the upgrade of bilateral ties to a strategic cooperation partnership offers the chance for the two countries to seek and fully exploit their cooperation potential for mutual benefit.

He also said that the RoK government and businesses praised the investment environment in Vietnam and will continue to expand their investment in the country.