General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central
Committee and President To Lam and his spouse, together with a high-ranking
Vietnamese delegation, visited Japan’s Kanagawa prefecture on November 10 as
part of their official visit to Japan, the Vietnam News Agency reported.
During the visit, General Secretary and President Lam met
with Kanagawa Governor Kuroiwa Yuji and attended a banquet hosted by the
Japanese official. He also visited Meiko Electronics Co., Ltd., toured the
Vietnam-Japan Sculpture Exhibition and attended the Vietnam-Japan Friendship
Concert.
At the meeting with Mr. Kuroiwa, the top Vietnamese leader
expressed his pleasure at visiting the prefecture and welcomed the positive
development of its cooperation with Vietnamese localities and ministries,
including the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam’s Ministry
of Culture, Sports and Tourism during this visit, describing it as a practical
contribution to deepening bilateral friendship and cooperation in a substantive
and comprehensive manner.
The Vietnamese leader spoke highly of the Governor’s
affection for Vietnam, particularly his annual organization of two festivals
and various investment and labor-related seminars in both Vietnam and Kanagawa.
He thanked the Governor and prefectural authorities for their continued support
for more than 45,000 Vietnamese people studying and working in the locality;
and welcomed Kanagawa’s plan to establish a Hanoi-Kanagawa Economic and Trade
Office this year.
The General Secretary and President briefed the host on the
outcomes of his successful talks with Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae,
during which the two sides agreed to issue the Vietnam-Japan Joint Vision
Statement, opening a new phase of development in the bilateral ties as partners
working together to co-create shared benefits, promote high-quality growth, and
strengthen strategic autonomy and resilience in line with the development
orientations of both countries.
He stressed that local-level cooperation is an important
channel for translating high-level agreements into concrete outcomes and
providing a sustainable foundation for the bilateral relations.
Congratulating Kanagawa on hosting GREEN x EXPO 2027, a
major event promoting green and sustainable development, General Secretary and
President Lam expressed his confidence that the exhibition will provide a
chance for the prefecture to showcase its achievements in green technology,
innovation and sustainable urban development, and expand cooperation
opportunities with Vietnam in environmental protection and green growth.
He called on Kanagawa to further strengthen ties with
Vietnamese localities through exchanges and visits of delegations at all
levels, and encourage its businesses to expand economic collaboration and
investment in Vietnam, particularly in areas where the prefecture has
strengths, including high technology, semiconductors and green transition.
The Vietnamese leader also proposed closer cooperation in
healthcare, including the promotion of Kanagawa’s ME-BYO preventive healthcare
model to improve the quality of life of elderly people in Vietnam. At the same
time, he encouraged the prefecture to facilitate Vietnamese businesses’ access
to its market, technologies and innovation ecosystem.
He affirmed that Vietnam stands ready to create favorable
conditions for Kanagawa-based businesses to invest and operate successfully in
the country.
For his part, Mr. Kuroiwa warmly welcomed General Secretary
and President Lam, his spouse and the Vietnamese delegation, expressing his honor
at receiving a Vietnamese Party and State leader in Kanagawa for the first
time.
Briefing the Vietnamese leader on cooperation with Vietnamese
localities, Mr. Kuroiwa said nearly 40 Kanagawa-based businesses are currently
investing in Vietnam, while the Vietnamese community has become the largest
foreign community in the prefecture.
He noted that Kanagawa is proud to host Japan’s largest Vietnamese
festival and has also organized festivals in Hanoi since 2018, attracting large
numbers of local residents.
The Governor announced that the Kanagawa Festival 2026 will
be held in Hanoi this month, while the musical “Princess Anio” will be staged
at Ho Guom Opera in March 2027. He expressed his hope that the production will
have more opportunities to be performed across Vietnam, noting that such
cultural events will help further strengthen cooperation between Kanagawa and
Vietnamese localities and ministries.
Highlighting Kanagawa’s position as one of Japan’s leading
satellite manufacturing centers, Mr. Kuroiwa
expressed his desire to expand cooperation in space technology, healthcare,
innovation, semiconductors and artificial intelligence. He also showed his hope
that the prefecture could receive more skilled Vietnamese workers and technical
interns in the coming years.
On this occasion, General Secretary and President Lam
witnessed the exchange of the cooperation document between Kanagawa and
Vietnam’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and presented a certificate recognizing
the establishment of Kanagawa’s trade and industry promotion office in Hanoi.
AloJapan.com