Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Nguyen Phu Binh has presented a friendship medal to Director of Japan’s Vietnam Economic Research Institute Kubota Teruyoshi for his active contributions to developing friendly cooperation between the two countries.

Ambassador Binh also handed over the Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s insignia to Japanese businessman Ito Toyokichi in recognition of his contributions to disseminating Vietnam ’s culture to Japanese and RoK people.

Addressing the presentation ceremony in Tokyo on March 9, Ambassador Binh noted the Vietnam-Japan relationship has steadily developed since it was established 37 years ago.

The two countries’ leaders have agreed to build a strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia , he said, adding that these results are attributed to the efforts not only of the two governments but also their organisations and individuals, including Kubota and Ito.

Over the past 20 years, Kubota and his colleagues at the institute have provided their economic assessments of Vietnam to Japanese investors. He has also helped the Japanese business circle understand Vietnam ’s situation in order to increase their investment in the country.

Additionally, he has proposed practical policies to help the Vietnamese Government effectively manage the economy.

The institute has also represented a number of Vietnamese localities, including the northern port city of Hai Phong , the central coast city of Da Nang and the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong , in investment promotion activities in Japan .

Meanwhile, Ito loves to collect Vietnamese paintings and introduced them to the people of Japan and the Republic of Korea (RoK). These activities have helped promote the image of the Vietnamese people and their land in northeast Asia .

For their part, both Kubota and Ito pledged to continue promoting the Vietnam-Japan strategic partnership.

Kubota said he believed Vietnam ’s economy would deeply integrate into the world’s economy as the nation boasts socio-political stability and hard-working people.

Ito said he would continue collecting and promoting Vietnamese paintings in Japan and neighbouring countries.

He said he plans to organise a Vietnamese painting exhibition at the Busan Fine Arts Exhibition in the RoK./.