Prime Minister Suga Yoshihide and his Spouse will pay an official visit to Viet Nam from October 18-20 at the invitation of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Friday. 

Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Vu Hong Nam. Photo: VNA

Like his predecessor Abe Shinzo, PM Suga also chooses Viet Nam for the first foreign trip since assuming his post on September 16, 2020.

Viet Nam and Japan established diplomatic ties on September 21, 1973. Japan is the first G7 country to set up strategic partnership with Viet Nam in 2009.

The bilateral relations were upgraded to extensive strategic partnership on the occasion of State President Truong Tan San’s State visit to Japan in March 2014.

The Viet Nam-Japan relationship has become a model of friendship and win-win partnership, creating a foundation for cooperation in ensuring stability and peace in Southeast Asia and beyond, emphasized Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Vu Hong Nam.

Nam added that the relationship has expanded robustly over the last decade, especially in fields of investment, trade, and people-to-people exchanges, particularly during the administration of PM Abe Shinzo.

Japan is one of the top economic partners of Viet Nam and the first G7 country to recognize Viet Nam’s market economy status in October 2011.

The Northeast Asian country is also the biggest provider of official development assistance, the third biggest tourism source market, and the fourth largest trading partner of Viet Nam.

The two-way trade stood at US$28.6 billion in the first nine months this year, a year-on-year decrease of 1.8%, according to the Vietnamese Ministry of Trade and Industry.

As of September this year, Viet Nam housed 4,595 Japan-funded projects with total registered capital of US%59.87 billion, making Japan the second biggest investor in the Southeast Asian country.

In January-September period, the total investment inflows from Japan reached US$1.73 billion, said the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment.

As of December 2019, Japan provided around US$23.76 billion in official development assistance, accounting for 26.3% of the Government’s foreign loans.

Bilateral agricultural cooperation was given a strong boost in September 2015 when both countries signed the Medium-long Term Vision on Agricultural Cooperation, which was renewed in May 2018.

Cooperation in climate change adaptation has also advanced remarkably and substantively thanks to Japan’s continued funding to related projects in Viet Nam.

On labor cooperation, Viet Nam has sent more than 230,000 interns to Japan since 1992 and both countries have signed various documents to institutionalize cooperation in this area.

Regarding tourism, the number of Japanese tourists rose by 15.2% to nearly 952,000 in 2019, reported the Viet Nam National Administration of Tourism.

From January 1, 2014, Japanese visitors who arrive in Viet Nam for tourism and business purposes shall not have to obtain visa if the period of stay is 15 days or less./.