Tokyo (VNA) – Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung on May 27 visited Aichi prefecture, where he met with Governor Omura Hideaki and Nagoya Mayor Hirosawa Ichiro, part of his working visit to Japan for the 30th Nikkei Forum "Future of Asia".

Deputy PM Dung expressed his pleasure at visiting Aichi and highlighted the fast and substantive development of the Vietnam – Japan relationship over one year since the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership, characterised by high political trust.

He acknowledged the growing cooperation between Aichi prefecture, Nagoya city, and Vietnam in various fields, including economy, investment, labour, cultural exchanges, and people-to-people ties.

He also thanked and called on Aichi and Nagoya authorities to continue supporting the Vietnamese community residing, studying, and working there.

The Deputy PM proposed that the Aichi Governor and Nagoya Mayor further enhance cooperation with Vietnam, aiming to set a model for local-level collaboration between the two countries.

At the meeting with Omura, Dung appreciated the governor and the Aichi administration's efforts in promoting Vietnam – Aichi relations, particularly in economy, investment, labour, along with cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

Expressing his hope for stronger economic partnerships, the Vietnamese official asked Omura to encourage Aichi enterprises to make new investments and expand projects in Vietnam, especially in automotive and supporting industries, and to bolster cooperation in areas of Vietnam's demand such as innovation, science and technology, digital and green transformation, semiconductor, and aerospace.

He also emphasised the importance of cooperation in training high-quality human resources to meet the needs of businesses in both Aichi and Vietnam.

Governor Omura, who has visited Vietnam five times, noted over 200 Aichi enterprises are investing in Vietnam, and that the prefecture has signed a cooperation agreement with Ho Chi Minh City, co-organising the annual Vietnam Festival that attract hundreds of thousands of participants.

Aichi is home to the largest Vietnamese community in Japan, with approximately 64,000 people, and 16 of its universities have partnerships with Vietnamese institutions, he added, expressing interest in increasing direct flights between Vietnam and Aichi to further promote people-to-people exchanges and tourism.

Highlighting Aichi's strengths in heavy industry, science and technology, semiconductor, and health care, Omura affirmed his commitment to encouraging more Aichi enterprises to invest in Vietnam, particularly in high-quality human resources training, innovation, science - technology, semiconductor, and supporting industries.

At a separate meeting, Deputy PM Dung congratulated Hirosawa on his recent election as Mayor of Nagoya, and asked him to promote investment by Nagoya-based Japanese enterprises in Vietnam, as well as to strengthen local-level, cultural, and tourism cooperation.

Discussing ongoing collaboration between Nagoya and Vietnam, Hirosawa mentioned that his city will host the 2026 Asian Games and expressed his hope to welcome many Vietnamese athletes and enhance cultural and tourism ties on that occasion.

🦂 He also proposed establishing additional air routes between Nagoya and various Vietnamese cities to facilitate these exchanges./.