Vietnam, Japan enhance parliamentary ties

Siem Reap (VNA) – The parliamentary cooperation between Vietnam and Japan has become an important factor in fostering the two nations’ comprehensive relations, said a senior lawmaker of Vietnam.

Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly’s Committee for External Relations Nguyen Van Giau made the statement while receiving a delegation of Japanese parliamentarians in Siem Reap, Cambodia on January 15 on the sidelines of the 27th Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) Annual Meeting (APPF-27).

The Japanese delegation was led by Takuji Yanagimoto, head of the Japanese Delegation to APPF-27 and Representative of Honourary President of the APPF Yasuhiro Nakasone.

Takuji spoke highly of the Vietnamese NA’s efforts in hosting the APPF-26 last year, affirming that Vietnam is a leading partner of Japan in Southeast Asia.

Sharing views with Giau, he said in addition to the enhanced political exchange and trust between the two countries’ high-ranking leaders, via bilateral and multilateral parliamentary diplomacy, the legislatures of Vietnam and Japan will contribute to strengthening the parliamentary partnership for peace, security and sustainable development in the Asia-Pacific region.

Giau and Takuji noted with pleasure the regular exchange of visits by the two countries’ senior leaders, including those to Vietnam by the Japanese Emperor and Empress, and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2017.

President Tran Dai Quang and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s visits to Japan in 2018 opened up a new development stage of the bilateral ties in a more comprehensive and practical manner.

The Vietnamese official said he is pleased with the strongly developing economic, trade and investment cooperation between Vietnam and Japan, stressing that Vietnam considers Japan a leading and long-term partner. He expressed his wish that the two sides will continuously expand their effective and pragmatic relations in all fields, meeting the aspirations of the two countries’ businesses and people as well as for peace and prosperity in the region and the world.

In the overall Vietnam-Japan relationship, the collaboration between the two legislative bodies has been developing fruitfully with the regular exchange of high-ranking delegations and discussions on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and other issues of common concern, he said.

At the meeting, Giau and the Japanese parliamentarians exchanged their views on opportunities and challenges from CPTPP and expressed their delight at the recent strengthened cooperation between friendship parliamentarians’ groups and localities as well as people-to-people exchange.

The number of Vietnamese students in Japan is increasing day by day and the Vietnamese community in Japan now surpasses 290,000, four times higher than the figure five years ago.

The Japanese lawmakers hoped that the two sides will well implement the signed cooperation documents in education and labour.

Giau also expressed his wish that with efforts by both sides, the Vietnam-Japan University in Vietnam will become a symbol of educational cooperation between the two countries.-VNA