Student delegation from Vietnam visits Korea to promote youth exchanges

A student delegation from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV) visited Korea this week to attend the "Korea-Vietnam Future Dialogue," an opportunity to promote bilateral youth exchanges.

Chairman of JoongAng Holdings and the Korea Peace Foundation Hong Seok-hyun, center, poses for a photo with a student delegation from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam at the HSBC Building in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [KIM HYUN-DONG]

A student delegation from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam (DAV) visited Korea this week to attend the "Korea-Vietnam Future Dialogue," an opportunity to promote bilateral youth exchanges.

On Wednesday, they also visited JoongAng Holdings in Mapo District, western Seoul, and met with JoongAng Holdings Chairman Hong Seok-hyun, a former Korean ambassador to the United States. They also visited broadcaster JTBC studios in Ilsan, Gyeonggi, on Monday.

The "Korea-Vietnam Future Dialogue," jointly hosted by the JoongAng Ilbo and the Korea Peace Foundation, is a private exchange program for the next generation that kicked off last year to provide opportunities to expand exchange and cooperation for the younger generation of both countries.

"When I worked as an economic analyst at the World Bank in the 1970s, I predicted that Vietnam would become the No.1 country in Southeast Asia," said Hong, who is also chairman of the Korea Peace Foundation. "Considering the current pace of economic development in Vietnam, my prediction seems to be becoming a reality.

"When Korea and Vietnam become even closer than they are now, it will mutually benefit both," continued Hong. "And I hope the younger generation will prepare the two countries to become one of the closest relationships in the world."

"Vietnam and Korea have many similar aspects, such as sharing Confucian culture," said DAV official Hoang Van Haim, who is leading the 20-person Vietnamese delegation. "We understand each other largely through multicultural families formed by Korean and Vietnamese men and women. I hope cooperation and development will occur in various fields, including with Korean companies operating in Vietnam."

The Vietnamese delegation, which arrived on Monday, visited the Center for Unified Korean Future under the Ministry of Unification to understand the reality of Korea's division and discuss ways to expand economic and cultural exchanges with Korean university students.

Chairman of JoongAng Holdings and the Korea Peace Foundation Hong Seok-hyun, right, shakes hands with Hoang Van Haim, an official from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, at the HSBC Building in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [KIM HYUN-DONG]

"If companies or organizations from both countries operate various joint projects, it will provide stability to jointly respond to the supply chain crisis centered on the United States and China," suggested Seo In-hoo, 22, a political science and diplomacy student at Korea University taking part in the exchange program with DAV.

Vietnamese students expressed interest in the possibility of Vietnamese women settling in Korea and emphasized that the Korean Wave — the popularity of Korean pop culture overseas — could help overcome the cultural divide between the two countries.

During their visit to Korea, the DAV delegation visited the JTBC Ilsan studio to experience Korean Wave content production and toured the National Museum of Korea and the War Museum to learn about Korean culture and history.

They will visit the Samsung Electronics Museum in Suwon on Thursday to see firsthand the modernization process of Korean industry and return to Vietnam on Friday.

Chairman of JoongAng Holdings and the Korea Peace Foundation Hong Seok-hyun, center, speaks during a meeting with the student delegation from the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam at the HSBC Building in Jung District, central Seoul, on Wednesday. [KIM HYUN-DONG]

BY JEONG YONG-SOO,LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]