HÀ NỘI – The Vietnamese Embassies in the US and Japan have organised gatherings to celebrate the traditional Lunar New Year (Tết) festival.

The event held on January 19 in Washington DC saw the attendance of over 600 guests, including overseas Vietnamese and US friends.

Speaking at the event, Vietnamese Ambassador to the US Nguyễn Quốc Dũng reviewed outstanding achievements in Việt Nam’s socio-economic development and the Việt Nam - US relations in 2023.

The Ambassador hailed the Vietnamese community's contributions to the country’s achievements and hoped that the community will keep growing, strengthening its solidarity and serving as a bridge that helps foster Việt Nam-US relations.

In a similar event held by the Vietnamese Embassy in Japan on January 21 in Tokyo, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Phạm Quang Hiếu sent his sympathies to all Japanese people and the Vietnamese community affected by the earthquake that occurred in Ishikawa prefecture.

He stressed that with the consensus and joint efforts of the entire nation, including overseas Vietnamese, Việt Nam made great achievements in 2023 in spite of numerous difficulties and challenges.

Regarding Việt Nam-Japan relations, the year 2023 was of special significance to the two countries, and they had jointly organised more than 500 activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations, the diplomat said. Particularly, on the occasion of the official visit to Japan by President Võ Văn Thưởng in November 2023, Việt Nam and Japan upgraded their relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia and the World – the highest level in Việt Nam’s foreign relations.

He said overseas Vietnamese in Japan have made active and effective contributions to the great strides in the relations between the two countries.

Currently, more than 520,000 Vietnamese people are living, working and studying in Japan, making the Vietnamese community the second largest foreign community in Japan. VNA/VNS