President Truong Tan Sang on March 17 pledged to Japanese business leaders that Vietnam will continue to create the best possible conditions for foreign investors, including those from Japan, during his State-level visit to the country.

Meeting with Vice Chairman of Japan Business Federation (Keidanren) Masahiro Sakane, President Sang spoke highly of the federation’s role in enhancing economic, trade and investment ties between the two countries.

Cooperation frameworks and mechanisms established by Keidanren and Vietnam such as the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative or policy dialogue have effectively contributed to building a more attractive investment climate in Vietnam, he said.

On this occasion, the President engaged in a seminar with leaders of Japan’s largest groups organised by Keidanren, which aimed to provide Japanese businesses with the latest information on Vietnam’s economic situation and orientations as well as priorities in its cooperation with Japan.

He asked Japanese firms to place more importance on collaboration with the Vietnamese Government and businesses in education and training in order to create high-quality human resources.

Vietnam will seriously keep its commitments to ensure legitimate rights of investors, the President said.

Representatives of Japanese groups voiced their proposals on how to boost economic, trade and investment relations between the two countries, especially to help Vietnam achieve sustainable development and its industrialisation goals by 2020.

The same day, President Sang had a working session with Chairman of the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) Hiroyuki Ishige, during which he expressed his delight at the organisation’s survey outcomes, which showed that up to 70 percent of Japanese businesses in Vietnam plan to expand their operation in the country.

The leader noted his hope that two-way trade between Vietnam and Japan will reach 50 billion USD before 2020.

For his part, the JETRO Chairman said the organisation will play well its role as a bridge between Japanese firms and the Vietnamese market, adding that an increasing number of Japanese businesses are showing their interest in Vietnam.

At a meeting with Chief Executive Officer of Sumitomo Corporation Kuniharu Nakamura, the Vietnamese leader noted with pleasure the smooth operation of the corporation’s projects in Vietnam.

He highly valued the corporation’s support to Vietnam in education, including its provision of more than 2,000 scholarships to Vietnamese students since 1996.-VNA