Japan and Vietnam to strengthen partnership

Yasuaki Tanizaki

Japan Ambassador to Vietnam Yasuaki Tanizaki spoke with VIR’s  Lien Huong about the biggest achievements in the two countries’ cooperation and future steps aimed at moving bilateral relationship forward.

The first Japan-Vietnam Partnership Dialogue was opened in Hanoi in December 2010 and the second dialogue is to be held in Japan this year. What is the meaning of this dialogue to bilateral relationship of Japan and Vietnam?

Japan and Vietnam have been building a strong mutual trust and friendly cooperative relationship on the foundation of the strategic partnership. However, the cooperative relationship is not only concerned with economic areas such as trade, investment and economic development that are growing strongly.

Japan and Vietnam are also building a more profound collaborative relationship covering other issues including political dialogue and security.

The first partnership dialogue, which opened late last year in Hanoi, was unique, focusing on security and international political situations - not just economic issues.

A meeting of the Japan-Vietnam Cooperation Committee is also scheduled to be held in 2011, hosted by the two countries’ foreign ministers and covering many other cooperation areas, including economic issues.

Last year, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung agreed to choose Japan as a partner in the construction of Vietnam’s second nuclear power plant and also in investigating, exploring and extracting rare earth in Vietnam.

In his official visit to Vietnam in November 2010, Japanese Premier Naoto Kan also expressed the Japanese government’s willingness to provide 79 billion yen in official development assistance (ODA) for five projects in Vietnam, including the Lach Huyen International Port, as well as consideration of assistance for other projects, including another international airport in Vietnam.

At the Consultative Group Meeting 2010, Japan was among the biggest committed ODA partners for Vietnam. Are there any changes in the areas prioritised with Japanese ODA in Vietnam?

In the CG Meeting 2010, Japan committed to providing Vietnam with about 150 billion yen ($1.8 billion) in ODA for the fiscal year 2011. Priority areas to be financed by the Japanese ODA will remain unchanged in Vietnam. There will be a focus on economic infrastructure projects such as highways, ports, airports and power plants. Other areas including education, healthcare and rural development are also targets for Japanese ODA, mainly in the form of grants.

Last year was the first year that Vietnamese and Japanese enterprises enjoyed preferential tariffs defined by the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). How do you view the growth in bilateral economic cooperation last year?

The Japanese economy has benefited from the EPA, which took effect from October 2009. Japanese buyers benefit by consuming cheaper Vietnamese goods because of lower tariff levels. There are more and more Japanese investors showing their interest in exploring investment opportunities or doing business in Vietnam. It is, however, more important now to think about the Japan-Vietnam economic relationship in global terms, not only bilaterally. There are currently a great number of Japanese companies doing business in China, with which Vietnam has a big trading volume and value. A proportion of those goods exported from China to Vietnam and in return imported from Vietnam to China were produced by the Japanese companies and joint ventures in China.

Vietnam and Japan are negotiating the EPA’s pending issue of dispatching Vietnamese nurses and domestic helpers to work in Japan. How is the discussion going on both sides?

Japan and Vietnam have agreed to keep working on the issue of nurses and domestic helpers for two years after the EPA’s date of effect. In December 2010, a Japanese mission arrived here in Vietnam to continue the discussion on the issue. I think that both sides will accelerate the discussion and find solutions on this matter this year.