The Vietnamese people are delighted to share with the Japanese leadership and people the pride in Japan's achievements in the cause of national construction. From the ruins of war, Japan has rapidly risen to become one of the world's leading powerful nations, as well as being an active participant in international economic, political, and social forums.
In recent years, since the assumption of the office, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has effectively implemented the Abenomics new economic policy, bringing about numerous achievements.
Japan's trade turnover reached JPY154.02 trillion in 2017, up 2.19% compared to 2016. Japan is currently the third largest economy in the world. Japan's tourism is also developing strongly, having welcomed 28.7 million international tourists in 2017, the highest ever number so far.
With strong will and determination, Japanese leaders and people have constantly made efforts to reconstruct areas damaged by earthquakes and tsunamis in addition to restoring the pace of economic growth. The government of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has carried out an active foreign policy towards promoting Japan's leading role in the region, with a focus on boosting economic connectivity, trade liberalisation and maritime security, contributing significantly to enhancing Japan's position in the international and regional arena.
Since diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1973, the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Japan has been continuously nurtured by generations of leaders and peoples, becoming a common treasure of both countries.
In 2014, Vietnam and Japan set up the strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia, marking a significant milestone in the bilateral relations.
The good relations between Vietnam and Japan have been strengthened through regular high-level visits and exchanges by leaders of the two countries. Vietnam and Japan have also maintained important cooperation mechanisms such as the Vietnam-Japan Cooperation Committee which is co-chaired by the two Foreign Ministers and the Vietnam-Japan Defence Policy Dialogue at deputy ministerial level. Japan has also coordinated closely and effectively with Vietnam at many multilateral forums and international organisations.
We are pleased to see that the economic cooperation between Vietnam and Japan has grown steadily. Japan is the largest provider of official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam and is Vietnam's fourth largest trade partner.
The volume of bilateral trade reached US$33.4 billion in 2017, up 16.8% compared to 2016. Japan's direct investment in Vietnam in 2017 also hit a record high of US$9.11 billion, to rank first among countries and territories investing in Vietnam. From 1992 to March 2017, Japan committed about US$30.5 billion worth of ODA loans to Vietnam.
Agricultural cooperation between Vietnam and Japan has also achieved many breakthroughs. Both sides signed the medium and long term vision of Vietnam-Japan agriculture cooperation. Cooperation on climate change response continues to see strong and substantial development, with Japan continuously providing ODA to Vietnam's climate change response projects.
Education cooperation between the two countries has also achieved promising results, with the number of Vietnamese on-the-job trainees and students in Japan rising to nearly 200,000 in early 2018. Japan is cooperating with Vietnam to build the Vietnam-Japan University to train high quality human resources for Vietnam in the fields of science and technology, management, and services.
Bilateral cooperation in tourism and labour is also being promoted. The Vietnamese community in Japan comprises more than 262,000 people, while the Japanese community in Vietnam amounts to about 16,000 people, who all serve as a bridge to boost the relationship between the two countries.
The state visit to Japan by President Tran Dai Quang takes place on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the diplomatic ties which aims to affirm Vietnam's appreciation of the strengthening of an extensive strategic partnership with Japan and the wish to bring bilateral relations into a new stage of development in all aspects, for the interests of both parties. The visit is also an opportunity for the two sides to exchange ideas on regional and international issues of mutual concern for the peace, stability, cooperation, and development of the region and the world.
