President Vo Van Thuong and his wife received the Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Japan.

On the morning of September 22, at the Presidential Palace,President Vo Van Thuong and his wife received Crown Prince Akishino and Princess of Japan during their official visit to Vietnam from September 20 to 25.

At the reception, President Vo Van Thuong warmly welcomed Crown Prince Akishino and the Princess to visit Vietnam again on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries (September 21, 1973 / September 21, 2023); believing that the visit of the Crown Prince and Princess will make an important contribution to enhancing understanding between the people of the two countries, creating a solid foundation to promote the strong development of friendly and cooperative relations between the two countries in the future.

President Vo Van Thuong and his wife take a photo with Japanese Crown Prince Akishino and Princess.

Expressing his delight at the positive and proud achievements in cooperation between the two countries in all fields from politics , economics, investment, trade to culture, education-training, local cooperation, people-to-people exchange, etc., President Vo Van Thuong especially emphasized the development in people-to-people exchange, cultural cooperation, education-training between Vietnam and Japan. The President affirmed that the relationship between the two countries is currently at its best stage of development ever and has a full foundation to raise it to a new level in the coming time. The President thanked and hoped that Japan would continue to pay attention and create favorable conditions for the community of nearly 500,000 Vietnamese people living, studying and working in Japan; at the same time, he said that Vietnam is ready to create the best conditions for Japanese businesses and people to do business and live conveniently in Vietnam.

Crown Prince Akishino and the Crown Princess respectfully conveyed the message of Emperor Naruhito and Empress of Japan to President Vo Van Thuong and his wife. Through the message, the King sent his regards and best wishes to the President and his wife, saying that he still cherishes memories of his previous visit to Vietnam; expressed his gratitude to the Vietnamese leaders for inviting the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess to make an official visit to Vietnam on this occasion, and hoped that the visit would contribute to strengthening the friendly and cooperative relations between Japan and Vietnam.

The Crown Prince expressed his joy at being able to visit Vietnam again on such an important occasion in the relationship between the two countries; thanked President Vo Van Thuong and his wife, as well as the leaders of the State and people of Vietnam for the warm and respectful reception given to the delegation on this occasion, as well as when members of the Japanese Royal Family visited Vietnam in the past, including the visit of the Japanese Emperor and Empress Dowager in 2017 (then the King and Queen), and the Japanese Emperor in 2009 (then the Crown Prince).

The Crown Prince said he was very impressed by the rapid and strong changes and development of Vietnam in the past 11 years since his visit to Vietnam in 2012; and was delighted with the strong, comprehensive and outstanding development of the Vietnam - Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership in recent times. Recalling the historical connection between the two countries since the 8th century, the Crown Prince emphasized that the cultural similarities and long-standing historical ties, in the spirit of mutual respect, have created a solid foundation of friendship between the two countries and that foundation is being inherited, cultivated and developed by future generations.

On behalf of the State and people of Vietnam, President Vo Van Thuong thanked Emperor Naruhito for his message, as well as the affection and care that the Royal Family, leaders and people of Japan have shown to Vietnam over the past time. The President emphasized that the Vietnamese people still hold good memories of the historic visit to Vietnam by Emperor Akihito and the Empress Dowager in 2017 as the Emperor and Empress of Japan, as well as the valuable assistance that the Japanese people gave to Vietnam during the most difficult period of the Covid-19 pandemic.

On this occasion, President Vo Van Thuong and his wife sent their regards and best wishes to Emperor Akihito and the Empress Dowager, Emperor Naruhito and the Empress, and members of the Japanese Royal Family, and invited the Japanese Emperor and Empress to visit Vietnam soon.

According to VNA

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