National Assembly Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn (second from left) had a meeting with leaders of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), which was co-hosted by Fujimoto Masayoshi and Ueno Shingo, co-chairs of the Japan-Việt Nam Economic Committee of Keidanren in Tokyo on Wednesday. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

TOKYO — National Assembly (NA) Chairman Trần Thanh Mẫn had a working breakfast with leaders of the Japan Business Federation (Keidanren), which was co-hosted by Fujimoto Masayoshi and Ueno Shingo, co-chairs of the Japan-Việt Nam Economic Committee of Keidanren.

Fujimoto Masayoshi emphasised that over the past five decades, Japan and Việt Nam have developed a close friendship in various areas including economy, diplomacy, security, culture, and personnel exchanges.

He highlighted that 2023 marked a significant milestone with the 50th anniversary of Japan-Vietnam diplomatic relations. Most recently, in October 2024, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính at the 44th and 45th ASEAN Summits and related meetings in Vientiane, Laos, and with President Lương Cường on the sidelines of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week in Lima, Peru in November. The Japanese and Vietnamese PMs had a discussion at the G20 Summit in Brazil last month.

Expressing his pleasure at the dynamic cooperation between the two countries at multiple levels, Fujimoto Masayoshi affirmed that the Japanese business community will continue to contribute to the further development of Japan-Việt Nam relations, particularly in trade, investment, infrastructure and human resources development, with the goal of deepening economic ties between the two nations.

He said that the Japan-Việt Nam Joint Initiative, launched in 2003, serves as a long-term effort to establish a foundation for economic cooperation. Through this initiative, Japanese companies have played a crucial role in encouraging Japan's direct investment in Việt Nam, creating jobs, and contributing to the recovery and growth of Việt Nam's economy.

Notably, in March 2024, Japan and Việt Nam agreed to launch the Japan-Việt Nam joint initiative in the new era, he noted, expressing his hope that Japanese businesses and economic organisations will soon see stable cooperation outcomes in areas such as green development, digital technologies, innovation, and high-quality human resources development. He asked for the support of the Vietnamese NA, Government, and NA Chairman Mẫn himself in these efforts.

For his part, Mẫn welcomed the valuable contributions of Keidanren and the role of the two co-chairs as well as Japanese business leaders in advancing bilateral relations, serving as a bridge for Japanese investors to land more investments in Việt Nam.

He said that his official visit aims to further Việt Nam's foreign policy while proactively strengthening and promoting the Việt Nam-Japan comprehensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the world, bringing it to a new phase of effective and substantive cooperation across various fields.

The top legislator encouraged businesses and localities of the two countries to seize opportunities to enhance exchanges and cooperation, leverage each other’s strengths, and continue advancing the Việt Nam-Japan economic relationship, maintaining its role as a highlight of bilateral ties and a driver for mutual development.

At the event, representatives from Japanese businesses and Vietnamese authorities sought ways to promote cooperation towards the goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. The discussions also covered expanding investment activities in Việt Nam in areas such as infrastructure development, digital transformation, green transition, semiconductors, and the training of high-quality human resources, as well as ensuring electricity supply for production.

Speaking highly of the proposals from the Japanese enterprises, the top Vietnamese legislator said that he will direct the parliament's agencies to work with the Government and relevant ministries and sectors to study and institutionalise them, helping improve the business climate and encourage stable and long-term foreign investment in Việt Nam, particularly those from Japan.

He laid stress on recent legislative revision to facilitate the operation of foreign firms, and particularly expressed his hope that the amended Electricity Law, which was adopted at the recent eighth session of the 15th National Assembly, will open up various cooperation and investment opportunities in the sector for both domestic and foreign enterprises.

Mẫn also voiced his hope for continued collaboration with Japan in the area of technology transfer for the development of a harmonious transport system to serve the people and the economy.

Describing institution, infrastructure and human resources as the three bottlenecks for Việt Nam's development, he said Việt Nam is working to remove the roadblocks, revise existing laws and issue new policies to prepare the groundwork for a new era – the era of the nation’s rise.

He said he hopes that the Việt Nam – Japan comprehensive strategic partnership will general numerous collaboration opportunities for the two countries, including the business communities.

Within the framework of his visit, Mẫn witnessed the exchange of several cooperation documents encompassing such areas as organisation of local administration conferences, energy, industrial park, logistics and aviation services between localities and enterprises of both nations. — VNA/VNS