Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, his spouse and entourage arrived in Tokyo on late afternoon of October 7 to attend the 10^th Mekong-Japan Summit Meeting and visit Japan.

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc, his spouse and entourage is welcomed at the airport. (Photo: VGP/Quang Hieu)

He was accompanied by Minister, Chairman of the Office of the Government Mai Tien Dung, Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung, Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha, Minister of Finance Dinh Tien Dung, and Governor of the State Bank of Vietnam Le Minh Hung, among others.

The delegation was welcomed by Japanese Parliamentary Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs Norikazu Suzuki, Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Umeda, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Nguyen Quoc Cuong, staff of the Vietnamese Embassy, and representatives from the Vietnamese community in the East Asian country.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will host a grand welcome ceremony for the Vietnamese Government leader on October 8. They will then hold talks and witness the signing of important cooperation agreements.

PM Phuc will receive Chairman of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance Nikai Toshihiro, and visit the Vietnamese Embassy in Tokyo.

He will attend the 10^th Mekong-Japan Summit Meeting and the Mekong-Japan investment forum, as well as meet the Japanese Emperor and leaders of the National Diet.

During his stay, the PM will have several meetings with Japanese investors, work with the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), hold talks with Japanese property companies, and attend a Vietnam investment promotion forum with 1,000 business representatives expected to be present.

The 10^th Mekong-Japan Summit Meeting marks ten years of the Mekong-Japan cooperation mechanism, and three years of carrying out the Tokyo Strategy 2015. Vietnam’s attendance at the event aims to affirm the country’s commitment to this cooperation mechanism.

Also, the meeting will also offer an opportunity for relevant sides to review experience in the past ten years, map out major orientations, and recommend measures to improve cooperation efficiency in the coming time.

Japan recommended the Japan-Mekong partnership programme at the 12^th ASEAN Summit in 2007. Since then, member countries of the cooperation mechanism has organised nine high-level meetings, 11 ministerial meetings and economic ministers’ meetings, reaching various agreements.

During 2009-2012, their cooperation focused on soft and hard infrastructure, sustainable development, narrowing development gap, environmental protection, response to challenges like diseases and natural disasters, and enhancing exchanges between Mekong countries and Japan.

Meanwhile, they worked together to bolster connection within the Sub-Mekong region, between the Sub-Mekong region with other parts of the world, and between Mekong countries and Japan during 2013-2015. Also, the Mekong development roadmap for 2012-2015, and the Mekong-Japan Economic and Industrial Cooperation Initiative were carried out.

For 2016-2018 period, aiming to attain the “quality growth”, and continue sustainable economic development, the countries joined hands to branch out industrial infrastructure as well as develop transport links between Mekong countries and other regions. In addition, they worked to expand industrial sectors and regional value chain, improve human resources, foster institutional and economic connection and people-to-people exchanges, and accelerate sustainable development towards a green Mekong.

At the 7^th Mekong-Japan Summit Meeting in Tokyo on July 4, 2015, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe announced the official development assistance of about JPY 750 billion (USD 7 billion), to the five Mekong countries to carry out the New Tokyo Strategy 2015 for Mekong-Japan Cooperation. Japan also prioritised the Sub-Mekong region when carry out the “Partnership for Quality Infrastructure” initiative in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank. The USD 110 billion project aimed to developing high-quality infrastructure in Asia-Pacific.

Furthermore, the Mekong Industrial Development Vision for the 2016-2018 period has been carried out under the Mekong-Japan cooperation mechanism./.

VNF/VNA