State President Vo Van Thuong to visit Japan next week

The visit is made at the invitation of the Japanese State, said Ms Pham Thu Hang at a press briefing in Ha Noi on November 23.

The visit is expected to contribute to further deepening political, diplomatic, economic, trade and investment relations between the two countries; and promoting bilateral cooperation in such new fields as green transformation, innovation, and digital transformation, in the interest of the two peoples, for peace, cooperation, development and prosperity in the region and the wider world, said the Spokesperson.

During four-day visit, President Vo will hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, pay a courtesy call on the Japanese Emperor and Empress, and meet other senior Japanese leaders.

This is the first visit to Japan by Vo in his capacity as President, and the fourth by a President of Viet Nam since the two countries established diplomatic relations in September 1973.

The visit takes place at a time when the two countries are celebrating 50 years of their diplomatic relations and nine years of their extensive strategic partnership.

Viet Nam and Japan established diplomatic relations on September 21, 1973 and upgraded their ties to a strategic partnership in 2009. Five years later, the two countries established an extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia.

Japan is the first country of the group of seven industrialized countries (G7) to recognize Viet Nam’s market economy status. It has twice invited Vietnamese leaders to attend the expanded G7 Summit. 

The Viet Nam - Japan relationship features with high political trust, and the two countries share common views on many regional and international issues.

Japan is Viet Nam’s leading economic partner and the largest ODA provider, ranking second in labor cooperation, third in investment and tourism, and fourth in trade. 

Last year, the two-way trade reached nearly US$50 billion, including US$24.2 billion worth of Vietnamese exports./.