Socialist Republic of Vietnam

Prime Minister Phan Van Khai on June 6 expressed his expectation that Vietnam and Japan would soon sign an Agreement on Investment Encouragement and Protection.
Mr Khai was talking with his Japanese counterpart, Junichiro Koizumi, in Tokyo, Japan, prior to the 'Future of Asia' Conference scheduled for June 7-8.

Mr Khai will deliver a speech on Vietnam's economic development and future contribution to the region at the conference.

Having appreciated Japan's pivotal role in keeping peace and stability in the region and the world as a whole, Prime Minister Khai reaffirmed Vietnam's policy to constantly strengthen and develop a long-term and mutual-confidence partnership with Japan.

He described Japan's economic and financial assistance, especially Official Development Assistance, ODA, to Vietnam as of high efficiency, and expressed a hope that the two countries would reach an agreement on investment encouragement and protection soon so as to boost trade ties.

In return, Mr Koizumi affirmed the importance he attaches to strong relations with Vietnam. He went on to say that Japan would constantly develop co-operative ties, both bilateral and multilateral, with Vietnam, and continue its assistance to the country's renewal process through its ODA and co-operation in information technology and other fields.

The two government leaders focused their talks on measures to bring their co-operative ties to a new plane in the 21st century, thus, as they stressed, matching the two countries' great potential and meeting the interests of the two nations.

Mr Khai and Mr Koizumi also vowed to contribute more to peace, stability, co-operation, and development in the Asia-Pacific region and the world as a whole.

PM Khai invited his Japanese counterpart to pay an official visit to Vietnam. The invitation was accepted with pleasure.

Japan is Vietnam's biggest ODA donor, which has recently decided to provide Vietnam with more than US $600 million for the 2000 fiscal year, bringing the total of its ODA loans to Vietnam up to US $5.8 billion so far. It is also Vietnam's most important trade partner as its import value of US $2 billion made up 18 % of Vietnam's export turnover in 1999. (VNA)