State President Tran Dai Quang and spouse to pay state visit to Japan

State President Tran Dai Quang

Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko will meet and hold a state banquet to welcome Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and his spouse. President Quang will also hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The visit takes place as Japanese-Vietnamese relations are at their historical strongest. The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1973 and upgraded ties to an Extensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia in 2014. The two nations have maintained high-level visits and meetings at international and regional multilateral forums.

Japan is one of the leading economic partners of Vietnam and the first country among the G7 to recognise the market economy status of Vietnam (October 2011). Currently, Japan is the largest official development assistance (ODA) provider, the second biggest investor, and the fourth ranking trade partner of Vietnam.

In 2017, the total bilateral trade turnover was $33.4 billion, increasing by 16.8 per cent on-year, and $8.7 billion in the first quarter of this year, up 15.7 per cent against the first quarter of last year.

Japanese direct investment into Vietnam reached the peak of $9.11 billion in 2017, ranking first among the nations and territories investing in Vietnam. At the end of March 2018, there were 3,693 valid Japanese-invested projects with the total registered capital of $49.84 billion, ranking second among the 116 nations and territories investing into Vietnam.

Japan committed around $30.5 billion in ODA loans to Vietnam between 1992 and the end of the 2016 fiscal year. In 2017, the two sides signed the exchange notes for five ODA projects worth over $1 billion, three ODA loan agreements, and exchange notes for four non-refundable aid projects. Japan also committed two additional ODA projects for the fiscal year of 2017.