Japanese media positive on PM Chinh’s business trip

Senator of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) Sastuki Katayama, appreciated PM Chinh's message of emphasizing that both sides will work together to shape the future. She said she hopes the two countries will strengthen their relationship and work together for the greater benefit of the entire region.

Yasutsugu Iwamura, chairman and CEO of AEON Group, said that it was a very strong message, particularly in helping him to better understand the connection between Japan and Vietnam, as well as the role of each nation during the development process.

According to him, AEON Group also realises the need to do more to contribute to furthering this development process.

Evaluating PM Chinh's message, Honna Hitoshi, president and general director of Erex Joint Stock Company, said his company operates in the energy sector, therefore he is interested in the PM’s opinion on this issue.

He expressed his impression with the Vietnamese PM's statement on developing economic activities associated with green growth and decarbonisation strategies. Therefore, he is thinking about how to provide energy in a stable and sustainable way for the nation.

Regarding the Vietnamese cabinet leader’s activities related to bilateral relations, politicians and many businesses assess that economic co-operation continues to be the main pillar of ties.

Senator Katayama noted that among ASEAN member states, with great growth potential and human resources, the nation has become an important partner chosen by many businesses for co-operation.

She assessed the great Vietnamese human resources coming to Japan, with the Far East nation is reviewing the foreign labour training system. She expressed hope for the stronger development of the system aiming to help Vietnamese workers to improve their skills and be successful when they return home or continue to engage in long-term jobs in Japan.

She added hope that the two countries will launch a broad array of activities aimed at intensifying investment, co-operating to improve technology, boosting investment, and increasing business and people-to-people exchanges.

For his part, Yasuhiro Nojima, chairman of the Vietnam - Japan Friendship Association, highlighted Vietnamese economic strength. Major international organisations, including the World Bank (WB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), predicted that the Vietnamese growth rate will continue at 5% to 6%.

According to him, there has been a large flow from the Far East nation to the Vietnamese market, although from now on there will be more flow from the country to Japan.

Nojima also said that currently, in terms of the strength and potential of its people, the nation is probably the brightest prospect among ASEAN member states.

Therefore, he believes that the country will have a greater voice in the future. Indeed, with these strong ties as the world economy continues to develop, the two countries' economies will certainly also develop.

Furthermore, Iwamura commented that Vietnam is an important country for AEON Group as believes that the nation has the advantage of political stability, harmony of national identity, and compatibility with AEON's business philosophy.

Iwamura said that AEON Vietnam is operating with a mission and contributing to modernising trade and improving service quality throughout Vietnamese localities.

Meanwhile, Hitoshi stated that the Vietnam - Japan Economic Forum on December 16 with the participation of PM Chinh and Vietnamese ministers had achieved great success and made very meaningful exchanges between the two sides.

Hitoshi, as well as Japanese businesses, always highly appreciate the Vietnamese investment environment and the economic and trade relations between the two countries.

He expressed confidence that the comprehensive co-operative relationship will continue to develop better based on trust and friendship between the two sides.

Assessing the potential and opportunities for further collaboration in green development, energy conversion, and use of new energy sources after PM Chinh's business trip, Hitoshi said he received enthusiasm and saw the determination of local leaders and agencies in Vietnam.

He affirmed that this is a great source of motivation for Erex in the process of implementing its work and is therefore determined to contribute to Vietnam in the process of realising the carbon neutral goal.

Kiyoshi Umezawa, representative of Sanshin Saiko Company, expressed great expectations for the strong development of ties between both nations. He believes that this will be an important basis for Japanese businesses to decide how to invest and the level of investment appropriate to a country that has a special partnership with Japan.

Regarding the Vietnamese role in ASEAN, many Japanese experts believe that the strong development of joint ties has contributed to further facilitating co-operation between ASEAN and Japan.

Senator Katayama highly appreciated the Vietnamese role and said that this role will continue to be enhanced in ASEAN.

Dr. Tomotaka Shoji, director of the Regional Research Department of the National Institute for Defense Studies (NIDS) of the Japanese Ministry of Defence, stated that the two countries have worked together a lot within the ASEAN framework.

For Japan, ASEAN is an important international framework. Within that framework, linkages between both nation is carried out very smoothly, he went on to say.

Bilateral relations have developed strongly and both sides value each other. For Japan, strong bilateral co-operation is viewed as a factor for Vietnam to become a close partner in ASEAN.

According to Dr. Shoji, in ASEAN, Japan always prioritises ties with the Vietnamese side in the fields of economics, regional security, and many other issues such as climate change adaptation and cyber security.

He assessed that the country is co-operating very closely with Japan and within the ASEAN framework, with the relationship between the two nations continuously developing.

Professor Go Ito of the Department of International Relations at Meiji University, assessed that promoting relations between both sides within the multilateral framework is very important.

On the multilateral front, there are ASEAN-Japan and ASEAN+3 mechanisms, with these mechanisms contributing to strengthening co-operation and exchange between the two nations.

According to Professor Ito, strong exchange activities between the two countries are spreading to other countries around ASEAN.

He said it is important in the future to promote this multilateral co-operation in an appropriate way.

Professor Dr. Shiraishi Masaya, professor emeritus of Waseda University and chairman of the Japan Association for Vietnamese Studies, commented that Vietnam is a member of ASEAN and an important partner in Japanese diplomatic relations. As such, Vietnam is playing an active role as an increasingly important actor in ASEAN.

With the ASEAN framework as the core, both nations are located in a multi-layered concentric circle of multilateral relations in the region. He believes that with its national increasingly consolidated strength, Vietnam's importance to Japan will further increase, Professor Masaya added.