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Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on July 9 had a meeting with Yoshitaka Shindo, Japan's minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy and Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization, New Capitalism, Startups, Infectious Disease Crisis Management, Social Security Reform, and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (right) receiving Minister Yoshitaka Shindo in Hanoi on July 9. Photo: VGP

At the meeting, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Minister Shindo Yoshitaka assessed that the friendly and cooperative relationship between Vietnam and Japan in recent times had strong and comprehensive developments with high political trust.

In 2023, the two countries upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership, and celebrated the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

During recent times, trade relations between Vietnam and Japan have been developed extensively, comprehensively and substantially.

Japan continues to remain the most important economic partner of Vietnam, the first partner in providing ODA loans (with a total ODA capital of nearly US$30 billion to date), the second in terms of labor (currently, there are more than 580,000 Vietnamese people in Japan), the third in investment (with 5,304 valid projects with a total registered investment capital of US$74.4 billion) and fourth in trade (with two-way trade turnover reaching US$45 billion in 2023).

In addition to the CPTPP, Vietnam and Japan are also members of many other free trade agreements and economic cooperation frameworks such as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (AJCEP), the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (VJEPA), and most recently the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). These cooperation frameworks play an important role in promoting trade, investment and business relations between the two countries to a new level, according to the Prime Minister.

The Prime Minister said that currently the two sides still have a lot of room to utilize the advantages and incentives from the cooperation frameworks of which the two sides are members, especially the CPTPP as a new generation FTA, including many extensive commitments.

The PM asked the Minister to continue contributing to further deepen mutual understanding and trust, promoting bilateral trade cooperation between the two countries in the coming time.

He proposed the two countries to promote bilateral cooperation in all fields and study mechanism to create breakthroughs in economic, trade and investment cooperation.

To continue to bolster bilateral cooperation between the two countries, PM Chinh called on the Japanese Government to maintain cooperation with and support Vietnam in the cause of national industrialization and modernization based on science, technology, innovation, green growth, digital economy, circular economy, sharing economy, and knowledge-based economy.

The two sides agreed to continue to coordinate with each other, and with other CPTPP members in activities implementing the Agreement. Photo: VGP

At the meeting, the PM also proposed that Japan continue to open the market for Vietnamese fresh fruit products, including pomelo and passion fruit, while creating conditions for Vietnamese businesses to engage in Japanese production, supply, and import-export chains. He also vowed to facilitate Vietnamese market access for Japanese products like grapefruit and peach.

For his part, Minister Yoshitaka Shindo proposed that Vietnam coordinate with Japan to promote cooperation with specific programs and projects, especially in the fields of trade, investment, innovation, entrepreneurship, education, training and labor.

Minister Shindo Yoshitaka appreciated Vietnam's human resources. He said Japan will promote training cooperation so that Japan becomes a more attractive destination for Vietnamese interns and workers, and they can maximize their abilities.

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