Party General Secretary’s visit to Japan amid East Sea tensions: A strategic view
21/9/15
Japanese media
these days continue to have a number of articles on the visit of Party General
Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Following the recent visit by Party General
Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to Japan
from 14th to 18th September, Japanese media and public
continue to express their optimism about bilateral ties.
The fruitful
official visit to Japan by
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, along with his successful tours to China and the US
earlier this year, has contributed to improving the stature of Vietnam and the
Party in the world.
The Vietnamese
Communist Party chief's visit - his first to Japan since assuming his post in
2011 his first to Japan since assuming his post in 2011 - as a contribution to
deepening the intensive and extensive strategic partnership between the two
countries in order to promote peace and prosperity in the region.
Japanese public
opinion expressed the hope for new development in bilateral relations after the
visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.
The Party leader
said despite historical fluctuations, both nations have overcome past
challenges to promote trust, economic connection, sustainable development and
future orientation.
Citing economic
cooperation, the Party leader said Japan
has contributed 30% of the 90 billion US dollars of ODA granted to Vietnam, with a total FDI capital of Japan
worth over 37.5 billion dollars and projected bilateral trade revenue of 30
billion dollars this year.
During the visit,
the two sides agreed to bolster economic connectivity which is critical to
their relations with focuses on development strategy connectivity, production
capacity connectivity, and human resources connectivity.
Vietnam and Japan
were unanimous in expanding collaboration in other realms, including culture,
people-to-people exchange, education-training, science-technology, and defence
exchange. Japan will support
Vietnam
in joining the United Nations peace-keeping activities and improving the law
enforcement capacity at sea.
The tour was made
at a time when bilateral ties were developing fruitfully with a myriad of
cooperation opportunities and opened up a new vision for the growth of the two
countries’ extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia.
The Vietnamese
leader and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe issued a joint vision statement
on the countries’ relations, which illustrated a new, positive and solid stride
in their connections.
The two sides will
strengthen connections in ensuring maritime security and safety – such as in
search and rescue – and coping with non-traditional security issues like cyber
security and terrorism, trans-national crime and piracy prevention. Japan will also support Vietnam to
improve the capacity of its law enforcement at sea, addressing the consequences
of unexploded ordnances leftover from wartime and joining United Nations
peacekeeping forces.
Japan welcomed Vietnam’s foreign policy of
independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation and development,
diversification and multilateralisation of relations, and active international
integration. It also valued the Southeast Asian nation’s role in sustaining
peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.
Meanwhile, Vietnam lauded Japan’s active contributions to
regional and global peace and development through laws, policies and
constructive initiatives.
The two sides expressed serious
concerns over recent developments on the South China Sea,
including the massive land reclamation work and construction of outposts, which
intensify tensions, damage trust and threaten peace and stability in the region
and the world.
"It is very significant that we
shared grave concerns over continuous unilateral actions to change the status
quo and increase tensions in the South China Sea, which includes large-scale
land reclamation and building of outposts," Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo
Abe said in apparent reference to China's activities during a press
conference.
The two countries
in recent years have begun cooperating more closely on defense matters. Both
have also become embroiled in maritime disputes with the largest country in the region, China. Beijing
set up a new air-defense zone over the East China Sea in November 2013, in
waters also claimed by Japan, and has recently stepped up land reclamation and
building work on disputed islands of the South China Sea, known as the East Sea
in Vietnam.
According to analysts, Mr. Trong’s
visit was directed in part at mobilizing Japan’s
support in the South China Sea and forging a stronger alliance with Tokyo. An official at Japan’s foreign ministry said Mr. Trong and
Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe are expected to share their concerns about what
both countries perceive to be China’s
efforts to strengthen its territorial claims in the South
China Sea.
Japan will extend 100 billion yen ($832 million) in
infrastructure aid to Vietnam
and provide patrol boats as the two countries vow to expand ties amid growing
concern over China’s
muscle-flexing in disputed areas of the South China Sea.
Japan will supply Vietnam’s coast guard with 200
million yen ($1.7 million) worth of used ships and equipment, Japanese
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said after meeting with Vietnamese Communist Party
General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Last month, Japan
delivered the first out of six vessels it had promised to give Vietnam for the
Southeast Asian country to enhance its maritime law-enforcement capability.
They also highlighted the significance
of ensuring peace, security, and maritime and aviation safety and freedom and
urged relevant parties to not conduct unilateral actions complicating and
expanding disputes in the East Sea, resolve all disputes peacefully in
accordance with internationally recognised principles – particularly the 1982
UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, seriously implement the Declaration on the
Conduct of Parties in the East Sea and work to shortly issue a code of conduct
in the waters.
It is concluded that the successful tours by Party
General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong intensified Vietnam’s important external
relations and considerably elevated the global standing of the country and the
Party, ultimately helping create a favourable international environment for the
national development and protection./.
All comments [ 4 ]
the relation between Vietnam and Japan has been developed based on mutual trust and respect
the visit of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to Japan demonstrated a new hight level of the relation
almost Vietnamese people feel confident and love Japan
Japan has played an increasingly important role for protection of safety, freedom of navigation, peace and stability in the East Sea
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