Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits Vietnam: Expectations reach new heights!

Returning to Vietnam for the third time as Prime Minister, Mr. Abe showed the development of the Vietnam - Japan strategic partnership in a complex world context.

Officially established in 1973, Vietnam-Japan relations are at their best stage of development. In recent years, leaders of the two countries have frequently met and had high-level contacts, bringing many opportunities for bilateral cooperation in many fields.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Vietnam on January 16-17 continued to affirm the development of this relationship.

Solid foundation of common interests

According to Dr. Phan Cao Nhat Anh, Deputy Director of the Center for Japanese Studies, Northeast Asia Research Institute, "strengthening defense and security cooperation is one of the contents of interest in high-level visits between the two countries."

Asia-Pacific is a region with many potential instabilities due to the diversity of politics and interests of countries. This makes it easy for Japan and Vietnam to share and have similar views on interests.

Japan has provided much support to Vietnam in improving its capabilities in patrolling, defending and ensuring maritime security.

One of the main pillars of Vietnam-Japan relations is economic relations. Due to the long coastline and the economic benefits from the sea, the two countries have many opportunities to learn and exchange experiences in this field. From there, they can tighten and expand cooperation in many other areas.

The Ho Chi Minh City urban railway project is being built with support from Japan.

Japan is Vietnam’s leading economic partner and the first G7 country to recognize Vietnam’s market economy. The two countries have many bilateral economic cooperation mechanisms, creating the premise for goods exports to always increase by an average of 13.9% in recent years.

In addition to the economic pillar, Vietnam - Japan relations have developed strongly over the years in a range of fields from education to agriculture, tourism, labor, climate change response, and cooperation between localities...

Prime Minister Abe's visit – a necessary step of consolidation

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's official visit to Vietnam and many Asian countries took place in a special context.

“The rise and tough actions of a country in the East Sea and the East China Sea. The Philippines has made moves to move away from its US ally and closer to China. President-elect Donald Trump has made statements asking for a review of the Japan-US alliance and a change in strategy with Asia. In that situation, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Vietnam will further strengthen and promote the Extensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia between the two countries,” Dr. Phan Cao Nhat Anh shared with Zing.vn.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the G7 Summit in Tokyo in 2016.

Kyodo quoted a Japanese official as saying that through the visit, Mr. Abe wanted to affirm the importance of free trade with four Asian countries in the context of President-elect Donald Trump's statements showing that the US could turn to trade protectionism, and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) was at risk of "dying young".

"TPP is a common interest. If TPP is not approved, it will be a loss for both Vietnam and Japan. But that does not mean that this can have a negative impact on the relationship between the two countries," said Dr. Phan Cao Nhat Anh.

According to Dr. Anh, recent trends show that the Vietnam-Japan bilateral relationship is expanding to areas such as national defense and security, education, and human resource cooperation. The upcoming visit of the Japanese Prime Minister will create momentum for such cooperation in the future.

Mr. Abe: A man devoted to Vietnam - Japan relations

Mr. Abe has made great efforts to strengthen Vietnam-Japan relations over the years. In 2013, after taking office as prime minister, the first country he officially visited was Vietnam.

Since then, the two countries have held annual high-level meetings. This is the third time Mr. Abe has visited Vietnam as Prime Minister.

Shinzo Abe is a figure with a strong political position in Japanese politics. He holds the position of President of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), Japan's largest political party. Most recently, Mr. Abe was the one who invited Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc to attend the G7 Summit in Tokyo in 2016.

Mr. Abe first became prime minister in 2006 and has held the position since 2012. Many people predict that he will continue to hold power and surpass Mr. Koizumi, becoming the longest-serving prime minister in modern Japanese history. This has made his interest in Vietnam reap many advantages and results over the years.

According to Zing.vn