Japan pledged to provide 500 billion JPY (over 5 billion USD) to Mekong nations over three years in implementing projects in all fields within the Mekong-Japan cooperation framework.

This announcement was made at the 4 th Meeting of Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers in Bali , Indonesia on July 21.

At the meeting, Japan also pledged to give about 20 million USD to assist the Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Development Triangle.

Mekong and Japanese FMs discussed a plan to boost cooperation between the two sides and some regional and international issues of mutual concerns.

They agreed to approve the Chairman’s Declaration on the spirit of “New Partnership for a Future of Common Prosperity” and committed to boosting cooperation and multifaceted relations, not only in the economic sector, but also in politics, culture and other fields, with a final target to build fine relations among nations.

At the meeting, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Gia Khiem stressed the role of cooperation in infrastructure development, especially Japanese-funded projects to develop infrastructure in the East West Economic Corridor (EWEC) and the Southern Economic Corridor (SEC).

He took this occasion to ask Japan to help Mekong nations to upgrade land routes within ASEAN as part of the master plan on ASEAN Connectivity.

The third Mekong-Japan Summit will be organised on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit, scheduled for November in Indonesia .

The Meeting of Mekong-Japan Foreign Ministers was attended by the FMs from Vietnam, Japan, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand under the Chair of Japanese FM Takeaki Matsumoto./.