Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and his entourage arrived in Hanoi on April 30 afternoon, beginning his two-day official visit to Vietnam.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and his entourage arrived in Hanoi on April 30 afternoon. Photo: VNA

During the visit, the Prime Minister will meet his Vietnamese counterpart and longtime friend Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. The visit comes less than six months following PM Pham Minh Chinh's visit to Japan in November, 2021.

Also, this will mark PM Kishida's first visit to Vietnam in his capacity as Japanese PM. The relationship between Viet Nam and Japan is considered to be at the best stage of development.

Regarding PM Fumio's official visit to Vietnam, Ambassador Takio said the Japanese leader regularly visited the country as Minister of Foreign Affairs and as a member of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance.

"I think that Japan-Viet Nam relationship has made solid steps towards "opening a new stage" and will continue to develop further in the future," said the Ambassador.

Also, ambassador Takio spoke about the two countries' tremendous achievements despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: "A joint statement entitled "Toward the opening of a new era in the bilateral extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia" and a list of specific cooperation projects of the two countries were also issued.

Since Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's visit to Japan, the scope of bilateral cooperation has been expanded from economic relations to cooperation on politics and security as well as on regional and international issues. The two countries have made significant progress in each field,".

Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Yamada Takio. Photo: Japan's Embassy in Hanoi

The Japanese diplomat also mentioned the "Vietnam - Japan Investment Promotion Conference" held during PM Chinh's visit to Japan in November, 2021, attracted the participation of 1,000 people in both face-to-face and online formats.

Takio said that amid investment activities around the world being disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Japanese businesses remain highly interested in and eager to invest in the Southeast Asian nation, especially Vietnam.

"During the course of the Vietnam - Japan Investment Promotion Conference", 45 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with a total value of up to US$12 billion were exchanged. During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, investment interest of Japanese firms in the Vietnamese market, a country that has been capturing attention thanks to the trend of diversifying the global supply chain, has been affirmed once again,"

He was also appreciative of Vietnamese efforts towards green growth and carbon emission reduction.

"During the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), PM Chinh made a declaration for the country to be carbon neutral by 2050, therefore the nation must continue to plays ways to meet this goal," the Japanese diplomat stated.

In line with this trend, during PM Chinh's visit to Japan, Japanese Environment Minister Yamaguchi Tsuyoshi and Vietnamese Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha signed a joint plan of action on Climate change towards the goal of being carbon neutral by 2050.

Japan will strive to promote comprehensive co-operation, with a particular focus on policies, technology and finance, with the waste-to-energy plant project in Vietnam’s northern province of Bac Ninh as a typical example. The launch and signing ceremony of this project was held in December, 2021.

Under the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM) between the two countries, the Japanese Government will provide financial support for Vietnam to purchase equipment using Japanese technologies, and further contribute to the circular economy in the country.

As many as 40 JCM projects have been approved in the nation, with Japan set to continue to ramp up co-operation in this form in the future, he added.

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