South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha paid a courtesy call on Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Thursday to discuss ways to expand cooperation and exchanges between the two nations. 

During the hour-long meeting, Kang stressed the need to swiftly implement a special entry program for essential trips by business travelers, saying that many small and medium-sized businesses are having difficulties because they can't enter Vietnam due to the long quarantine period. 

In response, the Vietnamese prime minister reportedly said his country is carrying out a domestic review to produce entry measures to allow essential business travelers to enter the country under "more advantageous" conditions.

The two sides also discussed joint efforts for more balanced trade relations and South Korean medical equipment manufacturers' difficulties operating in Vietnam due to the country's new bidding regulations.

Kang is scheduled to meet her Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Binh Minh, on Friday for talks on cooperation in COVID-19 responses and creating an expedited entry system for essential travelers from South Korea.