Japan affirms its determination to maintain and strengthen strong relations with Vietnam.

Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Ito Naoki. (Photo: VNA)

On the occasion of the 2nd anniversary of the establishment of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and Japan for Peace and Prosperity in Asia and the World (November 27, 2023 - November 27, 2025), Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Ito Naoki shared outstanding results in the bilateral relationship in various fields, and outlined orientations to promote the relationship in the coming time.

Strengthening political trust, expanding local cooperation

Ambassador Ito Naoki emphasized that after two years of upgrading relations to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia and the world , Vietnam-Japan relations "are closer than ever", reflected first of all in strong progress in political dialogue and high-level exchanges.

Since taking office in October this year, Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae has held talks with Vietnamese leaders three times: with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur; with President Luong Cuong at the APEC Summit; and most recently with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh at the G20 Summit in South Africa. The two sides affirmed that they will continue to further strengthen bilateral cooperation within the framework of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia and the world.

Previously, Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru visited Vietnam in April, affirming Japan’s support for the reform direction that Vietnam is promoting to enter a “new era”, and considering Vietnam an irreplaceable partner. Under former Prime Minister Ishiba as well as current Prime Minister Takaichi, Japan has maintained its determination to strengthen its strong relationship with Vietnam.

On the National Assembly channel, the visit to Japan by National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man last December made an important contribution to strengthening bilateral relations. Afterwards, the National Assembly Chairman continued to strongly promote parliamentary cooperation, including inviting the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance led by Ms. Obuchi Yuko to visit Can Tho city and organize an investment promotion seminar.

The leaders of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance also met with comrade Le Minh Hung, Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee, Head of the Central Organizing Committee, Chairman of the Vietnam-Japan Friendship Parliamentary Group, opening up exchanges between new generations of parliamentarians of the two countries.

From this political foundation, local cooperation between the two countries has developed strongly, becoming a “new trend” in bilateral relations. The Vietnam-Japan Local Cooperation Forum held in Quang Ninh on November 24-25 brought together 16 Japanese localities and related delegates, along with representatives of 31 provinces and cities in Vietnam, with the participation of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung.

This is the first time that a large number of delegates from both sides have attended an event, demonstrating the growing importance placed on local cooperation - an area expected to create new momentum for economic development and investment connectivity.

In his message to the forum, Prime Minister Takaichi affirmed that the experience of Japanese localities in community development, industry, tourism and human resource training will make practical contributions to Vietnam's development process.

Substantive cooperation on new pillars

According to Ambassador Ito Naoki, the new pillars of cooperation identified during Prime Minister Ishiba's visit to Vietnam, including digital transformation, green transformation, semiconductors and innovation, have all made important progress.

In the semiconductor field, Vietnam aims to train 500 PhDs by 2030; Japan has announced it will accept about half, or 250 people, through international cooperative research programs.

These programs have been implemented since September this year between 5 universities of each country, with a plan to receive 63 Vietnamese PhD students to Japan in the next three and a half years. Vietnam-Japan University also opened the “Semiconductor Chip Technology” major since October, currently has 106 students studying.

In the field of innovation, at the Vietnam National Innovation Day (October 1-3), Japan and the National Innovation Center - NIC launched the "VietLeap AI Accelerator" project to support 11 Vietnamese AI startups in capital mobilization and operations.

For green and energy cooperation, the two countries promote 15 investment projects with a total value of about 20 billion USD within the framework of the Asian Net Zero Emission Community (AZEC) initiative, including renewable energy and LNG power.

Four high-level meetings of the Vietnam-Japan AZEC have been held since December last year, with significant progress made in each project. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) to support the decarbonization process in Vietnam.

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is considering a program loan worth more than US$300 million to support climate change and green transformation, including promoting high-quality, low-emission rice production in the Mekong Delta as well as strengthening disaster prevention and control.

Along with that, strategic infrastructure projects implemented by Japan continue to make important marks, such as the opening of Metro Line 1 in Ho Chi Minh City; the groundbreaking of Aeon Hai Duong shopping mall; the smart urban project in the north of Hanoi; the completion of Yen Xa wastewater treatment plant; the Quang Tri wind power plant; the groundbreaking of O Mon 4 power plant; and the groundbreaking of Metro Line 2 in Hanoi.

According to the Ambassador, the ongoing reforms under the direction of General Secretary To Lam are creating more favorable conditions for bilateral economic cooperation. Two dialogues between Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Japanese enterprises this year have helped to remove obstacles, including adjusting the decree to allow investment extensions for machinery used for more than 10 years.

There are currently more than 2,000 Japanese enterprises operating in Vietnam; according to a survey by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), nearly 60% plan to expand their investment in the next 1-2 years. Two-way trade turnover from January to October 2025 reached 42.5 billion USD, up 11% over the same period; expected to exceed 50 billion USD for the first time in a year. Regarding investment, total capital increased by 18% over the same period.

People-to-people exchanges are also vibrant, with 580,000 Vietnamese people visiting Japan and 680,000 Japanese people visiting Vietnam in the first 10 months of 2025; expected to reach 1.4 million for the whole year.

Not only economic, cooperation in the field of security and defense is also expanding. In December, the two countries will hold the first “2+2” meeting at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers and Defense Ministers in Tokyo, discussing regional strategic issues, defense industry cooperation, equipment transfer, and non-refundable aid (OSA). Exchanges of naval and coast guard vessels between the two countries in recent times continue to be maintained.

In the field of criminal justice, Ambassador Ito Naoki said that Japan and Vietnam signed a bilateral agreement on extradition of international criminals in 2020. Earlier this month, a Vietnamese prisoner was extradited for the first time under the agreement. This is also a new form of cooperation that is developing between the two countries.

TRUNG HUNG

Source: https://nhandan.vn/nhat-ban-khang-dinh-quyet-tam-duy-tri-va-cung-co-moi-quan-he-vung-chac-voi-viet-nam-post926916.html