Nguyen Phu Trong waits for the arrival of Bangladesh's President Abdul Hamid at the Party's head office in Hanoi on Aug 10, 2015. The Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary will visit Japan on Tuesday. (Reuters photo)
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Vietnam-Japan relations
HANOI — Vietnamese Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong has called for enhanced bilateral cooperation in such areas as defence and security.
In response to questions earlier submitted by Kyodo News, Trong also thanked Japan for being Vietnam's biggest aid benefactor and sought its continued help, particularly in developing his country's infrastructure as it strives to turn itself into a modern industrial nation.
"Vietnam looks forward to the continued high influx of ODA (official development assistance) from Japan, especially into infrastructure and human resources development, development of advanced industry and agriculture, response to climate change and environmental challenges, as well as economic management capacity building," he said, while also seeking expanded Japanese investment in such areas as hi-tech and supporting industries.
He met on Satuda with Japanese reporters ahead of his four-day visit to Japan from Tuesday.
Trong's visit, in which he will meet with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will be his first to Japan since becoming general secretary of the ruling party in 2011.
The party chief noted that when Vietnamese President Truong Tang Sang visited Japan and met with Abe in March last year, the two countries upgraded their ties to an "Extensive Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia."
He said bilateral cooperation has expanded, mutual trust has been consolidated and economic ties continue to grow strongly, especially in terms of ODA, foreign direct investment, trade and tourism.
"Building upon that momentum, Vietnam would like its partnership with Japan to further deepen with greater efficiency and effectiveness in all areas, especially in the economic domain," he said.
The two countries, Trong said, "need to raise the effectiveness of cooperation in education and training, science and technology, culture, tourism, labour and people-to-people exchange environmental protection disaster preparedness, climate change response, as well as in defense and security."
Trong outranks both President Truong and Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Vietnam's leadership hierarchy.
His visit comes at a time when Japan and Vietnam are stepping up their cooperation in the wake of China's muscle-flexing in the South China Sea, where Hanoi is engaged in territorial rows with Beijing.