Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Phạm Quang Hiệu in an interview with Vietnam News Agency. VNA/VNS Photo

TOKYO — Deputy Prime Minister Trần Lưu Quang’s upcoming trip to Japan for the 28th International Conference on Future of Asia and a working visit not only shows the importance of the event to Việt Nam’s foreign policy but also extends the message that Việt Nam wishes to contribute more to the future of Asia, said Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Phạm Quang Hiệu.

In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency ahead of the trip, slated for May 24-26, Hiệu said that the Deputy PM’s speech at the conference would extend a message that Việt Nam is a reliable partner, and an active and responsible member of the international community. The country was willing to join other countries to discuss and find ways to solve global and urgent challenges today, contributing to peace, stability and development in the region and the world. This would also be a manifestation of the Party's foreign policy, continuing to push up and improve the efficiency of the work of external relations and international integration, as well as multilateral diplomacy, he said.

The annual conference is an international gathering where political, economic, and academic leaders from the Asia-Pacific region offer their opinions on regional issues and the role of Asia in the world. Held by the Nikkei group since 1995, it is considered one of the most important global conferences in Asia.

According to Hiệu, under the theme of “Leveraging Asia’s power to confront global challenges”, this year's event will serve as a forum for government leaders, corporate executives and academics to exchange views on opportunities and challenges that the world is facing, new development trends as well as commitments on efforts to contribute to peace and common prosperity of countries in the region, making proposals to solve common issues.

Participants will discuss regional issues, Asia’s role and potential, and solutions to raise the region’s position.

This year's conference will see six speeches by high-ranking leaders of countries and six panel sessions. The Deputy PM is expected to deliver remarks on Việt Nam's viewpoint on major issues in Asia, experiences and solutions to the common challenges of the region, and efforts to control the COVID-19 pandemic and to recover the economy.

Việt Nam started attending the annual event at its 15th edition in 2009 and has since continuously sent high-level delegations. The active participation of the Vietnamese delegation at the conferences in recent years has been highly valued by the organising committee, other participants, as well as the Japanese side.

Coming to the conference, Việt Nam will join not only the assessment of the situation in the world and the region but also find solutions to the common difficulties and challenges, consolidating trust so as to create a firm foundation for the future.

As a developing country deeply integrating into the global economy, Việt Nam especially upholds international cooperation and multilateralism, according to the ambassador. — VNS