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HANOI: Japan and Vietnam agreed on Monday (October 19) to strengthen security and economic ties, including an agreement in principle for Japan to export military equipment and technology to the Southeast Asian nation, amid concerns over the country’s regional assertiveness. China.
“It is a great step in the field of security for both countries that we have reached an agreement in principle on the transfers of defense equipment and technology,” Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga told reporters after meeting with his counterpart. Vietnamese, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, in Hanoi. .
“Vietnam, serving as president of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) this year, is key to achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Suga added.
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The leaders also agreed on the importance of maintaining peace, security and freedom of navigation and overflight in the South China Sea, and of resolving disputes peacefully, Phuc said in a joint media appearance with Suga. .
“Vietnam welcomes Japan, a world power, to continue to actively contribute to regional and global peace, stability and prosperity,” said Phuc.
Suga, who took office last month after Shinzo Abe resigned due to health problems, is making his diplomatic debut abroad this week with a trip to the vital nations of Southeast Asia, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Japan must balance its deep economic ties with China with security concerns, including Beijing’s push to enforce its claims on the disputed islands in the East China Sea.
Vietnam and other ASEAN members, many of whom have territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea, are wary of alienating a large economic partner and are reluctant to get caught up in an intense confrontation between the United States and China.
China claims swaths of Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone, as well as the Paracel and Spratly islands.
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Japan, which ended a decades-long ban on foreign arms sales in 2014 to help strengthen the nation’s armed forces and reduce the cost of home-built military equipment, has been in talks with Vietnam, Indonesia and Thailand on agreements to allow such exports to those nations.
Suga’s visit also coincides with Japan’s efforts to diversify its supply chains and reduce dependence on China by bringing production home or relocating to Southeast Asia.
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Vietnam is a popular choice for Japanese companies. Half of the 30 Japanese companies that used a 23.5 billion yen ($ 222.9 million) government program to diversify supply chains in Southeast Asia headed for Vietnam, which has aggressively courted such investment.
Suga said the two countries agreed to strengthen their cooperation to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We agreed to restart ‘business’ travel as well as passenger flights between the two countries today,” Suga said.
Suga also said Japan would help Vietnamese “trainees” working in Japan, many of whom are struggling as the COVID-19 outbreak hits Japanese companies.
