| President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at a press briefing after a summit with Vietnamese President Nguyen Chi Dung at the presidential palace in Hanoi, June 23. Yonhap |
Korea's finance ministry said Friday it has reached an agreement with Vietnam to offer low-interest loans to the Southeast Asian nation as part of its efforts to broaden bilateral economic ties.
Finance Minister Choo Kyung-ho held a meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart, Nguyen Chi Dung, in Hanoi, offering $2 billion through the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF), according to the Ministry of Economy and Finance.
A separate $2 billion will also be provided through the Economic Development Promotion Facility (EDPF), it added.
The memorandum of understanding was reached on the margins of Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's three-day state visit to Vietnam that started the previous day.
"We aim to expand the presence of Korean firms by pursuing high-value infrastructure programs, such as high-speed, medium-capacity and metro rail projects, through the EDCF and EDPF," the finance ministry said.
Seoul launched the EDCF program in 1987 to help developing countries with their basic infrastructure.
The $2 billion offered through the EDCF for the 2024-2030 period marks a sharp rise from the $1.5 billion set for the 2016-2023 period.
The EDPF is operated by the state-run Korea Development Bank. (Yonhap)