Japan premier praises Vietnam’s rapid rise as ‘Rising Dragon’

Japanese PM Takaichi arrived in Hanoi on Friday evening for a three-day official visit at the invitation of PM Hung, marking her first trip to the Southeast Asian country since taking office last October.

“Vietnam, true to the spirit of Thang Long, is developing at a remarkably impressive pace,” she said.

“In recent years, as a vital link in global supply chains, many Japanese companies have expanded their investments here [in Vietnam]."

She also highlighted Vietnam’s strategic autonomy and proactive foreign policy amid a complex and shifting global landscape.

According to PM Takaichi, strengthening ties with Vietnam is crucial to advancing Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) strategy.

She described her visit as part of a broader effort to deepen cooperation and reinforce shared goals in maintaining regional stability and openness.

“The Vietnamese prime minister and I will work together to elevate Japan-Vietnam relations to new heights,” she stated.

Six cooperation agreements signed

Following their talks, the two leaders witnessed the exchange of six cooperation agreements aimed at strengthening bilateral collaboration across multiple sectors.

These included two loan agreements between the Vietnamese government and the Japan International Cooperation Agency for a disaster-resilient rural development project and a climate-resilient infrastructure project supporting production for ethnic minority communities in northern mountainous provinces.

Others were a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on low-carbon growth under the Joint Crediting Mechanism, an MoU on irrigation technology and technical exchange, an MoU on information and communications technology and digital transformation, and an amended agreement on satellite data sharing between the Vietnam National Space Center and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.