Japan highly values the central role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in promoting peace and stability in the region and the world, Japanese Ambassador to Singapore Kenji Shinoda said at a recent workshop in Singapore.
Hanoi (VNA) – Japan highly values thecentral role of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in promotingpeace and stability in the region and the world, Japanese Ambassador toSingapore Kenji Shinoda said at a recent workshop in Singapore.
He described ASEAN as an important partner ofJapan over the past 45 years since they established relations in 1973, only sixyears after the foundation of the bloc.
The diplomat affirmed that Japan will continuepromoting the central role of ASEAN and work with the association to maintainregional stability and prosperity.
Japan is the third biggest trade partner ofASEAN and the second largest direct investor in the bloc.
Professor Pham Quang Minh, Rector of theUniversity of Social Sciences and Humanities under the Vietnam NationalUniversity, emphasised the crucial role of Japan in cooperation of the GreaterMekong Subregion (GMS), including five ASEAN member nations namely Thailand,Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Infrastructure is the first demand of GMScountries. Therefore, the best way Japan can help them is to complete buildingthe 1,500-km East-West economic corridor linking India with Laos, Thailand andVietnam, he said.
This would not only contribute to narrowingdevelopment gaps between countries in the region but also expanding extra-bloccooperation, he added.
Established in 1967, ASEAN groups Brunei,Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore,Thailand and Vietnam.-VNA
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Illustrative image (Source: internet) 
