Vietnam's president pays five-day state visit to Japan

Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and his wife left Hanoi for Japan on Tuesday to pay an official state visit until June 2, Vietnam’s Foreign Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

The five-day visit would contribute to promoting the development of mutual understanding and fruitful relations between Vietnam and Japan and deepening the extensive strategic partnership established since 2014, it said.

The president is scheduled to begin his trip with an official welcoming ceremony hosted by Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, followed by a meeting with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe and a celebration to mark the 45th anniversary of the countries' diplomatic relations.

Cooperation between Vietnam and Japan have flourished in recent years. Both countries' leaders maintained mutual high-ranking visits and agreed to work closely at international and regional forums.

Japan is Vietnam's largest source of official development assistance (ODA), as well as its second largest foreign investor, third largest tourism partner and fourth largest trade partner. By the end of  the first quarter this year, Japan had more than 3,600 investment projects in Vietnam with registered capital worth more than $450 billion. Two-way trade turnover reached over $8.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, up a staggering 15.7 percent against a year ago.

Vietnam and Japan are both members of the CPTPP, an Asia-Pacific trade agreement which was signed last March. Members of the trans-Pacific deal, including Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru and Singapore, believe that it will send a strong signal to the world on the importance of open markets, economic integration and international cooperation.