Korea, Vietnam discuss follow-up on science cooperation framework

The science ministry said Thursday that Deputy Prime Minister Bae Kyung-hoon met Vietnam's science and technology minister, Vu Hai Quan, in Seoul to discuss how the two countries will carry out the science and technology cooperation framework they signed in April.

The framework, agreed during a state visit to Vietnam in April by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the foreign ministry together with Vietnam's science ministry, aims to build a package-style cooperation system tied to the Korea-Vietnam Institute of Science and Technology, or VKIST. Under it, joint research, workforce training, the spread of results and infrastructure support are meant to work as one connected chain rather than as separate projects.

Bae, who also serves as science minister, stressed that the successful operation of VKIST and the building of a cooperation system are important if the two countries' science and technology partnership is to advance further, according to the ministry.

"I hope VKIST will develop into a base for science and technology cooperation and establish itself as a platform for cooperation across the entire cycle of science and technology innovation for the shared prosperity of the two countries," Bae said.

The two sides assessed the April framework highly and discussed follow-up implementation plans to carry cooperation into technology and industrial innovation and the training of future talent, the ministry said.