North Korean President Kim Jong-un to visit Vietnam
The North Korean leader will visit Vietnam in the coming days at the invitation of General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will pay an official friendship visit to Vietnam in the coming days, a statement from the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said today.
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| North Korean President Kim Jong-un. Photo:Reuters |
Mr. Kim Jong-un is Chairman of the Workers' Party of Korea and Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of Korea.
He is also expected to attend the second summit with US President Donald Trump on February 27-28 in Hanoi.
North Korea was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic relations with Vietnam, in 1950, after China and the Soviet Union. North Korea sent hundreds of military pilots to support Vietnam in the war against the US, trained hundreds of students in the 1960s and 1970s and provided aid in cement, steel, fabrics, medicine, and fertilizers.
The Vietnam-North Korea friendship was strengthened by the highest-level visits of the two countries' leaders. In 1957, President Ho Chi Minh visited North Korea and North Korean Premier Kim Il Sung visited Vietnam a year later. In June 1961, Prime Minister Pham Van Dong paid an official visit to North Korea. Three years later, Kim Il Sung returned to Vietnam in November 1964.
Vietnam has provided rice aid to North Korea many times. When a severe famine occurred in North Korea in 1994-1998, Vietnam provided 100 tons of rice in 1995 and 13,000 tons of rice in 1997. During the 2000-2012 period, Vietnam provided North Korea with 22,700 tons of rice, 5 tons of raw rubber and 50,000 USD.
Diplomatic relations between Hanoi and Pyongyang have been significantly strengthened since the late 2000s with visits such as the visit to North Korea by former General Secretary Nong Duc Manh in 2007 and former Minister of Public Security Le Hong Anh in 2008. Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly Kim Yong Nam and Premier of the North Korean cabinet Kim Yong Il visited Vietnam in 2001 and 2007, respectively.
During North Korean Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho's visit to Vietnam in November 2018, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh affirmed that Vietnam is ready to share with North Korea its experience in nation building, socio-economic development and international integration based on North Korea's requests.
During Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh's official visit to North Korea on February 12-14, Mr. Ri thanked Vietnam for its stance and efforts in promoting the dialogue process for peace, security, cooperation and development on the Korean peninsula.