Tokyo (VNA) – Vietnamese Ambassador toJapan Nguyen Quoc Cuong highlighted the significance of the first-ever Statevisit to Japan by President Tran Dai Quang from May 29 to June 2 and theprospects of cooperation between the two countries in a recent interviewgranted to Vietnam News Agency’s correspondents in Tokyo.

He said the visit will create a good chance forthe two sides to express their determination to bring the bilateral extensivestrategic partnership to a new period of development.

Annually, Japan only welcomes one or twoState-level visits. Therefore, the reception of President Tran Dai Quang thisyear shows that the country attaches importance to the role and position ofVietnam in the region and the world as well as the development of the bilateralrelations, he said.

For Vietnam, the visit is in line with the Partyand State’s foreign policy of diversification and multilateralisation, as wellas the policy of reform, door-opening and deep-and-wide internationalintegration, he added.

The Ambassador said the visit is a follow-up ofthe regular exchanges between the two countries’ leaders. He recalled thesuccessful visit to Japan in 2015 by Secretary General of the Communist Partyof Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong, and later by PrimeMinister Nguyen Xuan Phuc in 2016 and 2017.

In 2017, the Japanese Emperor and Empress made ahistoric successful visit to Vietnam. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe paid twoofficial visits to Vietnam the same year and attended the APEC EconomicLeaders’ Week in the central city of Da Nang in November 2017.

Regular exchanges have helped strengthen andreinforce political trust between the two countries and peoples, Cuong said.

He stressed that the Vietnamese President’svisit takes place at a time when the two countries are celebrating the 45thfounding anniversary of their diplomatic ties (1973-2018).

It provides an occasion for Vietnamese andJapanese leaders and people to look back at the achievements they have gainedover the past 45 years, the Ambassador noted.

He said while bilateral ties are at its best inhistory, there is still great room for the two sides to expand theirpartnership.

Vietnam is pushing aheadwith comprehensive reforms to achieve rapid and sustainable development towardsthe goal of becoming a modern industrialised country by 2030 with a visiontowards 2045.

Japan plays a crucial role in helping Vietnam implementthe Vietnamese Party and State’s policies, he stressed.

Meanwhile, Japan is stepping up theimplementation of the Abenomics policy, restructuring the economy andencouraging small-and-medium-sized enterprises to boost external investment.Vietnam is an important market and partner of Japan in the region, he noted.

A new foundation for Vietnam-Japan relations istheir active participation in negotiations to reach the signing of theComprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). The agreementis expected to come into force from 2019, opening new cooperation prospects forthe two countries’ businesses.

The Ambassador also highlighted the role of theoverseas Vietnamese in Japan in promoting the two countries’ relations. 

Besides, Vietnam and Japan share many strategicinterests in regional and international issues, for example their similarviewpoints on the East Sea matter. Both countries support the settlement ofdisputes in the East Sea via peaceful means and without threat to use or use offorce, based on international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Lawof the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS), he added.-VNA