With the title "Vietnamese Prime Minister holds talks with Prime Minister Kishida in Japan", NHK radio reported on November 23 that Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said he was honored to become the first foreign country's leader to visit Japan since Prime Minister Kishida Fumio took the position.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh meets with Mr. Suga Yoshihide, former Prime Minister of Japan, and Mr. Nikai Toshihiro, Chairman of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance. (Photo: VGP)
At the talks, the Vietnamese Prime Minister expressed his hope that economic and security cooperation relations between Vietnam and Japan will develop further in the future.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said Vietnam wishes to bring bilateral relations to new heights for peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region and beyond.
NHK said that during his 4-day visit to Japan, the Vietnamese leader is scheduled to give a speech at an event organized by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).
In another news with the title "Former Prime Minister Suga talks with the Prime Minister of Vietnam: Affirming to strengthen the expansion of trade promotion and exchange", NHK said, former leader of the Liberal Democratic Party Suga Yoshihide had a meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and affirmed the will to strengthen cooperation to promote trade and expand people-to-people exchanges.
Speaking at the meeting, Mr. Suga emphasized that Japan-Vietnam relations have a lot of potential for development.
Also on November 23, Kyodo news agency reported that former Secretary General of the Liberal Democratic Party Nikai Toshihiro, Chairman of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance, met Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh in Tokyo.
Towards the post-COVID-19 pandemic, the two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
Earlier, on November 22, Jiji news agency reported that Prime Minister Kishida Fumio expressed his wish to promote cooperation between the two countries, towards realizing the goal of "Free and Open Indo-Pacific".
The Jiji news agency quoted Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's interview before the visit to affirm that Vietnam hopes Japan will transfer vaccine and pharmaceutical technology to support the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The article quotes Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh as emphasizing that Vietnam-Japan relations are at their best, along with the two countries being able to foster mutual trust in many fields.
Last week, Kyodo news agency reported on Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's visit to Japan. The article on Kyodo also particularly emphasized the importance of the visit, as it marked the first time Prime Minister Kishida received a foreign head of state since taking office.
On this occasion, Kyodo news agency quoted Head of the Japanese Cabinet Office Hirokazu Matsuno as asserting that Vietnam is a partner that plays a role in efforts to realize the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific region. "We hope the leaders of Japan and Vietnam will continue to strengthen ties and build mutual trust," Mr. Matsuno said.
In addition, in its article, Japan's Mainichi newspaper emphasized that the Japanese Government attaches great importance to the strategic partnership with Vietnam. In the field of diplomacy, the two countries' relations are also very developed when in October 2020, Mr. Suga Yoshihide, who had just taken office as Prime Minister, chose Vietnam as his first foreign trip destination. Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, on the occasion of the Climate Change Conference that took place in the UK, also held talks with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.
Meanwhile, the Nikkei newspaper said, the two sides will discuss strengthening cooperation in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and affirmed that, for Japan, the ASEAN region is an important partner with the same purpose as Japan, in which Vietnam is a partner with common strategic and broad interests./.