Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe begins on January 16 a two-day visit to Vietnam, the last leg of his first trip abroad in 2017.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe

Prime Minister Abe and his spouse are visiting Vietnam at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc after touring three other Asia – Pacific countries – the Philippines, Australia and Indonesia.

The visit reflects the importance that Japan attaches to the extensive strategic partnership between the two countries and reaffirms Vietnam’s view of Japan as a key partner in the long term.

The two countries will work together to strengthen political trust and push for further cooperation in various fields, including economy, trade, investment, official development assistance (ODA), as well as agriculture, education, human resources together with adaptation to climate change, labour, national defence and security.-VNA

Japanese PM’s Vietnam visit – A good start for bilateral relations in 2017

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in Japan in September 2015

Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Nguyen Quoc Cuong has described the upcoming Vietnam visit by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as a good start for an eventful year in bilateral relations.

In an interview recently granted to Vietnam News Agency correspondents, Cuong said it will be the second visit by Abe following the first trip to Vietnam since he took office again in 2012. 

As scheduled, Abe will hold talks with Vietnam’s top leaders to discuss cooperation orientations between the two nations amid changes in the region and the world. 

According to the diplomat, the Japanese PM will be accompanied by businesses representatives who will attend a business forum and meet leaders of localities to enhance economic ties from the central to local levels. 

One week after the visit, Vietnam is due to welcome a delegation of 100 Japanese leading businesses – a programme organised by the Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

Japanese enterprises have highly evaluated the Vietnamese Government’s efforts to build a clean-fingered, tectonic and action-oriented government, he stressed.

Reviewing Vietnam – Japan relations, Cuong said 2016 was a year of effective, comprehensive and strong development of bilateral ties, evidenced by increasingly strengthened political trust and high-level meetings and contact, as well as regular economic activities. 

Japan continued to pledge a large amount of official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam and boosted cooperation in new spheres such as the supporting industry and high-quality agriculture, he said. 

Remarkable progresses were seen in joint projects in science-technology, human resource development and education-training. More than 20 delegations of Vietnamese local leaders visited Japan, while nearly 10 delegations of Japanese localities and enterprises visited Vietnam last year. 

He revealed that also this year, the Japanese Emperor and Empress will pay a first-ever state visit to Vietnam.

VNA