Prime Minister hosts Governor of Japan's Kagoshima Prefecture

Prime Minister Pham welcomed the visit of Kagoshima Prefecture's delegation to Viet Nam, which took place on the occasion of the 50^th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties. 

He lauded the fruitful development in the Viet Nam-Japan Extensive Strategic Partnership with high political trust. 

Japan has remained a leading important economic partner, the biggest official development assistance (ODA) provider, the third biggest investor and tourism partner and the fourth trading partner of Viet Nam, he said.

Pham expressed thanks to the support of the Governor for Viet Nam over the past time, adding that cooperation ties between Viet Nam and Kagoshima Prefecture have been strengthened across sectors, including manufacturing industry, agriculture, aquatic product processing and tourism. 

He spoke highly of Kagoshima's supportive policies and favorable conditions for the community of over 5,000 Vietnamese expatriates.

There are ample rooms for collaboration between Kagoshima and many localities of Viet Nam, particularly in automobile manufacturing, semiconductor electronics, agriculture, agricultural product processing, and supporting industries.

Meanwhile, he suggested both sides expand collaboration in other areas such as culture, tourism and people-to-people links.

Shiota Koichi, for his part, expressed his hope to establish a direct flight route from Kagoshima to Viet Nam. 

During his working visit to Viet Nam, the governor is scheduled to visit the northern province of Hai Duong, sign a memorandum of understanding with the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, and hold meetings with some major Japanese businesses operating in Viet Nam such as Aeon Mall and Akuruhi.

The same day, the Prime Minister had a meeting with the Japanese House of Representatives and Chairman of the Policy Research Council of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Hagiuda Koichi.

Both sides voiced their support for Viet Nam's and ASEAN's stances on the East Sea issue, the maintenance of navigation and overflight freedom and safety, and the peaceful settlement of disputes in line with international law.

They emphasized the need to fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and work toward an effective and practical Code of Conduct in the East Sea in line with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)./.