Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam actively took part in andmade important contributions to the Commemorative Summit forthe 50th Year of ASEAN - Japan Friendship and Cooperation whileobtaining substantive results from bilateral activities in Japan, Deputy Ministerof Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet has said. 

In an interview granted to the press about the outcomes of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to Japan from December 15 to 18, Viet highlighted Vietnam’s active participation in and important contributions to thecommemorative summit, from making preparations and building the agenda to deliveringremarks at the event.

PM Chinh’s speeches were profound and comprehensive as they reviewedthe 50 years of ASEAN - Japan relations, and also held strategic significance asthey proposed orientations for the relations’ future, the Deputy Minister said,noting that the speeches received high evaluation from other countries.

The Government leader of Vietnam highly valued the solidarity and cooperationbetween ASEAN and Japan, which have helped them surmount trying times andchallenges over the last half a century. He also proposed three majororientations for bilateral ties to become a model, an active factor, and animportant contributor to a peaceful and stable environment for commondevelopment in the region.

In particular, PM Chinh asked ASEAN and Japan to enhance strategic cooperationto build an open, inclusive, and rules-based regional architecture with ASEAN atthe centre. He called on Japan to continue its active support for the countriesin the Mekong sub-region to effectively cope with non-traditional securitychallenges, soon reactivate the Mekong cooperation mechanism, and prioritisethe programmes and projects that assist with sustainable development in thespirit of leaving no one behind.

He emphasised the demand for investing in the human factor, welcomed culturaland people-to-people exchanges within the framework of the “heart to heart”partnership between ASEAN and Japan, and asked for practical cooperation projects,programmes, and plans to carry out exchanges.

Besides, the Vietnamese leader underlined four connections, Viet said,elaborating that he asked the two sides to boost economic, trade, andinvestment connectivity and consider this as the focus and impetus for thedevelopment of the ASEAN - Japan comprehensive strategic partnership.

He proposed stepping up the connectivity of infrastructure, especiallystrategic facilities; expanding the connectivity in new areas, particularlyinnovation, digital transformation, green economy, circular economy,knowledge-based economy, and smart agriculture, and turning these areas intonew vitality for bilateral cooperation; and connecting the realisation of the SustainableDevelopment Goals during which they should not pursue economic growth at the expenseof social progress, equality or the environment.

On this occasion, PM Chinh also attended the first summit of the AsiaZero Emission Community (AZEC), where he conveyed a messageabout Vietnam’s strong determination and actions to deliver on its commitments,including actively strengthening cooperation to achieve all the three targetsof carbon emission reduction, energy security, and economic growth in Asia,according to Deputy Minister Viet.

Viet went on to say that the PM’svisit to Japan also concluded a year full of activities celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam - Japan diplomatic relations. It took place just twoweeks after the two countries elevated their ties to the comprehensivestrategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the world.

Highlighting many substantive and important results of thetrip, Viet noted that first, the visit further intensified the political trustbetween the two countries, enhanced the PM’s personal relations with Japaneseleaders, and was also the first step to implement the newly establishedcooperation framework.

Second,the visit was helpful in promoting substantive economic cooperation as bothsides agreed to expand ties in ensuring economic security and boostingVietnamese businesses’ engagement in Japanese firms’ global supply chains,particularly in automobile, electronics, medical equipment, and textile -garment industries. PM Kishida Fumio and other leaders of the Japanese sidepledged assistance for Vietnam to successfully carry out industrialisation and modernisationand build an independent and self-reliant economy.

Third,the visit helped reinforce human resources connectivity, locality-to-localitycooperation, and people-to-people exchanges.

And fourth,it opened up cooperation opportunities in new fields like energy transition, digitaltransformation, and innovation. Japanese businesses showed their high interestin Vietnam’s policies and demand and vowed to foster investment ties in newareas. More than half of the documents signed between the two countries’ministries, sectors, localities, and businesses at the bilateral economic forumcovered new areas, including smart city building, green transition, digitaltransformation, logistics, artificial intelligence, and robotics. This could bethe start of an investment influx from Japanese firms into new areas in Vietnamin the near future, Deputy Minister Viet added./.