Santo Akiko, President of the House of Councillors of Japan (second from right), meets Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Vũ Hồng Nam (first left) in Tokyo on Friday. VNA/VNS Photo Thanh Tùng

TOKYO — Santo Akiko, President of the House of Councillors of Japan, has praised Việt Nam’s impressive achievements in preventing and fighting the COVID-19 and highlighted the important role played by the Vietnamese National Assembly.

During a reception for Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Vũ Hồng Nam on Friday, Santo conveyed the thanks of the Japanese legislature to the Vietnamese NA and Chairwoman Nguyễn Thị Kim Ngân for the gift package of 20,000 face masks during the COVID-19 outbreak.

She briefed them on the positive results in the fight against the disease in her country, especially the country’s decision to lift a national state of emergency on May 25 and the recovery of socio-economic activities.

She spotlighted the fruitful development of their bilateral relations, especially legislative cooperation, expressing her hope that the cooperation between the two legislatures would further develop and reap new achievements in the future.

For his part, Ambassador Nam congratulated Japan on its success in containing the spread of COVID-19, affirming that this was an important premise for the Japanese Government to decide to lift the state of emergency earlier than the schedule to serve its socio-economic recovery.

He also thanked the Japanese government for its financial and medical support for the Vietnamese community in Japan amid the complicated developments of the disease.

The Vietnamese Government, NA and people always stood side by side with their Japanese counterparts under all difficult circumstances, he stated.

The diplomat also expressed his belief that the extensive strategic partnership between the two countries would continue to develop strongly, promising that he would always do his best to contribute to promoting the Việt Nam-Japan friendship and cooperation.

Phạm Minh Chính, head of the Organisation Commission of the Party Central Committee, who is also a Politburo member and head of the Việt Nam – Japan friendship parliamentarians’ group, received the newly appointed Japanese ambassador in Hà Nội the same day. — VNS