Hanoi (VNA) – National Assembly (NA) Chairman VuongDinh Hue hosted a reception for Special Advisor to the Cabinet of Japanand Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Japan Bank for InternationalCooperation (JBIC) Maeda Tadashi in Hanoi on July 27.

Welcoming Maeda Tadashi to return to Vietnam after hislatest visit in July 2022, NA Chairman Hue said that this is a chance for thetwo sides to further promote the Vietnam-Japan extensive strategic partnership forpeace and prosperity in Asia, as well as the cooperation between ASEAN andJapan.

He thanked the Japanese official for sharing his ideas on current importantissues, especially in energy transition. The Vietnamese top legislator underlinedthat it is an inevitable and objective process, contributing to implementingthe Sustainable Development Goals with no country standing outside. He notedthat at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), Vietnam madea strong commitment to the international community to achieve net-zero emissionby 2050.

NA Chairman Hue highlighted the significance of ensuring energy security, stressingthat energy transition should be made to suit the reality in each country.

Holding that energy transition is a global issue, he saidthat countries with slower development like Vietnam needs support from the internationalcommunity in three aspects - building institution, legal and policy system; technologiesand techniques; and finance.

He said that Vietnam highly values the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC)initiative by Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, adding that the country isworking hard to implement specific cooperation activities with Japan in thefield.

Agreeing with the Japanese official on the need to set up a joint working groupfor AZEC implementation, Hue affirmed that the Vietnamese NA iswilling to send officials from its committees to join the group.

He suggested that Vietnam and Japan make substantial cooperation tobuild and maintain strategic supply chains, including that on energy.

Underlining that the two countries have great potential inbiomass power development, Hue said that they should cooperate more closely inconverting energy production plants from coal to biomass fuel according to acertain roadmap, while working together in the supply chain of projects relatedto gas energy and coordinating closely in developing wind power and solar powersuitable to climate change situation in Vietnam and Asia.

For his part, Maeda Tadashi said that after his Vietnam visit in 2022, he has become Special Advisor to the Cabinet of Japan inpromoting carbon neutralisation.

He said that at G20’s meetings in 2022, Japan mentioned the AZEC. Meanwhile,the G7 has also focused on implementing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP).In order to realise the JETP, the JBIC has committed to supporting 300 millionUSD through Vietcombank to implement projects in the field of renewable energy.In the JETP, Japan has also offered soft loans, he added.

He underlined that Japan is drastically implementing the AZEC, while making alarge investment in a fund for new energy resource research. Vietnamese firmscan join their Japanese peers to conduct researches on new energy resource developmentusing this fund, he stated.

The JBIC Chairman said that Japan, the US and Australia willwork together to support Vietnam in mitigating climate change impacts, adding Japanhas set up a framework to assist Vietnam in this field./.