(VOVWORLD) - Speaker of the House of Representatives of Japan Oshima Tadamori begins a two-day official visit to Vietnam on Thursday. This visit and visits earlier this year by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Emperor Akihito and his wife Michiko have enhanced the two “extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia”, particularly parliamentary relations.
Vietnam-Japan diplomatic relations have progressed steadily since they were established in 1973.
Extensive strategic partnership
Japan is one of Vietnam’s top economic partners and the biggest provider of Official Development Assistance (ODA) to Vietnam. It ranks second in foreign investment and forth in trade with Vietnam. Bilateral trade turnover grows 14% annually and expected to reach 60 billion USD by 2020.
During his visit to Vietnam earlier this year, Prime Minister Abe and Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc agreed to expand trade and investment relations and improve the business environment. Mr. Phuc called on Japanese enterprises to invest in Vietnam’s green growth, high-quality infrastructure, technology transfers, banking and financial services, high-tech agriculture and manufacturing, equitization of state-owned enterprises, and start-ups. About 1,600 Japanese businesses are currently operating in Vietnam.
Ando Kengo, Secretary General of the Japanese Business Association in Vietnam, said they are keen on the Vietnamese market. Vietnamese dragon fruit was exported to Japan for the first time in March. Other fruits such as mangos, bananas, litchis and some vegetables are now seeking entry into the Japanese market.
Nguyen Truong Son, Vietnamese charge d’affaires in Japan, said: “Japan is a demanding market, but there are opportunities for Vietnamese agricultural products. After exporting red-flesh dragon fruit to Japan, Vietnam will seek ways to export other products.”
In addition to the 6th phase of the Vietnam-Japan Common Initiative and Vietnam’s Industrialization Strategy within the Vietnam-Japan Cooperative Framework until 2020 and Vision to 2030, the two countries have also pushed forward implementation of other cooperative agreements.
Promoting parliamentary diplomacy
Vietnam and Japan have strengthened both political relations and parliamentary diplomacy. They have exchanged high-level delegations and groups of “friendship parliamentarians”. Vietnam and Japan support each other at inter-parliamentary forums, sharing a common view on maintaining a peaceful and stable environment for development in Asia-Pacific.
House Speaker Tadamori’s visit to Vietnam reflects the strong political trust between the two countries’ senior leaders and parliaments.