Vietnamese president's visit to Japan historical: FM

The recent visit by Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang to Japan is said to be a historical marker, opening a new chapter in the bilateral relations, said Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on Thursday.

Minh made the remarks in a press briefing on the president's visit to Japan hereThursday, the ministry of foreign affairs said.

Vietnamese President Truong Tan Sang paid a visit to Japan from March 16 to 19 at the invitation of Japanese Emperor Akihito. This is the first state visit to Japan by Vietnamese president since 2007 and the second since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1973, said Minh.

During the visit, the Vietnamese president met with Japanese Emperor, representatives and officials of the royal families, Diet, government, leading economic groups and business associations among others.

Vietnam and Japan on Tuesday issued a joint-statement to elevate bilateral relations into an "extensive strategic partnership," determining major orientations of the relations in new period.

The two sides agreed to maintain high-ranking visit and exchanges, to boost bilateral cooperation in areas of security, defense, law and justice reforms, economytrade, investment, agriculture, human resource development, science and technology, healthcare, culture, and people exchanging, among others, said Vietnamese foreign minister.

Japan commits to support implementing action plan for six priority industries in Vietnam's industrialization strategy, including electronics, agricultural machines, agro-fishery manufacturing, shipbuilding, environment and energy saving, automobile and spare parts.

Japan also supports Vietnam in developing specialized industrial parks, building nuclear power plant in southern Ninh Thuan province, among others, said Minh.

Minh quoted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as saying that Vietnam continues to be seen as the most important partner in Japanese policy for official development assistance (ODA).

When asked about prioritized cooperation sectors between Vietnam and Japan in the future, Vietnamese Foreign Minister cum Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh said economic, investment and trade will be prioritized in the two countries' relations. Cooperation with Japan through ODA, foreign direct investment and public private partnership is of great importance to the development of Vietnam's infrastructure and energy sector.

The two sides strive to double the current annual two-way trade turnover of 25 billion U.S. dollars by 2020, said Minh.