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Vietnam and Japan have determined to speed up the implementation of a cooperative agreement on developing rare earth between the two nations, Vietnam's government online newspaper (VGP) reported on Wednesday.
"Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Le Duong Quang and Japan's Deputy Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Akaba Kazuyoshi affirm their determination at a recent working session to review the implementation of a cooperative agreement between the two governments," said the VGP.
According to Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade, Le Duong Quang visited Japan recently to attend the bilateral deputy- minister level working session.
VGP reported that both sides stress the need to outline a mid- term and long-term vision for the strategy to develop rare earth resources and also agree to facilitate progress on the Ninh Thuan nuclear power plant project in south Vietnam.
Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his visiting Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe on January 16, 2013 in Hanoi agreed to implement agreements reached by the two sides on economic cooperation, especially on construction of the Ninh Thuan Two nuclear plant and rare earth exploitation among others.
On June 16, 2012, Vietnam inaugurated its first center for rare earth research and technology transfer in capital Hanoi, based on an agreement signed by the Vietnamese and Japanese prime ministers in 2011.
The center will contribute to the study of rare earth ore processing in Vietnam and the application of rare earth in high- tech industries. The center is the first facility in Vietnam extracting and separating rare earth from exploited ore before exporting to Japan.
According to the Vietnamese Department of Geology and Minerals, the country has one of the world's largest rare earth reserves, mainly found in the northwest region.
On October 31, 2011, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, in his official visit to Japan, signed agreements with Japanese counterpart Yoshihiko Noda to promote the cooperation in the investigation, exploration, exploitation and processing of rare earths in Vietnam between both countries. The two sides welcomed the cooperation in the first rare earth project in Dong Pao, Lai Chau Province in northwest Vietnam.
Vietnam and Japan established diplomatic ties in 1973 and raised their relationship to Strategic Partnership in 2006. Japan remains Vietnam's leading economic partner and was the first G7 country to recognize Vietnam as a market economy in 2011.
Japan is also the largest foreign direct investor in Vietnam, the biggest Official Development Assistance donor to Vietnam, and the third biggest trade partner of the country.
