HANOI — Officials from Vietnam and Japan convened at the sixth meeting of their Joint Committee for industrial, trade, and energy cooperation in Hanoi on November 3, aiming to enhance their bilateral relationships in these crucial sectors.
According to Vietnam News Agency, both Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Nishimura Yasutoshi hailed the significant progress made since their last meeting in Tokyo in August 2022. They acknowledged the Joint Committee’s role in overcoming challenges and fostering the stable and ongoing development of trade and investment between the two nations.
The ministers deliberated on various strategies to boost trade and investment, improve supply chain robustness, develop digital economies, promote renewable energy and low-carbon solutions, and hasten Vietnam’s industrialization process.
Minister Dien recognized the vital role of Japanese investments in enhancing Vietnam’s production capacity and integrating local companies into Japanese and global supply chains.
Dien sought support from the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to incentivize more Japanese companies to invest and relocate their supply chains to Vietnam, particularly in priority and supporting industries.
The ministers also celebrated successful collaborations in the automobile sector, with Dien expressing the hope that both parties will continue to exchange information, experiences, and policies on developing eco-friendly vehicles.
A decision was reached to create a joint working group to develop projects aimed at propelling future-oriented industries like semiconductor manufacturing, artificial intelligence, space exploration, and biotechnology.
In terms of trade, Dien and Nishimura considered how to enhance Asia-Pacific economic integration through effective implementation of new-generation free trade agreements and multilateral cooperation frameworks involving both countries.
They acknowledged the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership’s (CPTPP) enforcement among founding members and the UK’s addition as the 12th member in 2023, underscoring that any expansion of the CPTPP should preserve the pact’s high standards and draw from the experience of the UK’s negotiation process.
The ministers viewed the establishment of a support unit for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) as a step that would bolster the agreement’s effectiveness and noted the interest of some economies in joining the RCEP.
Within the framework of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), they lauded the completion of negotiations on supply chains, which would facilitate member signing in the near future.
In response to a global economic recovery marked by uncertainty and sluggishness, Vietnam and Japan agreed to pursue concerted actions to increase balanced bilateral trade, strengthen e-commerce and the digital economy, open their markets to each other’s agricultural products, and conduct activities to boost business trade and investment.
Regarding energy collaboration, Minister Nishimura praised Vietnam’s adoption of National Power Development Plan VIII and its initiatives in energy transition, including early involvement in the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP).
Minister Dien expressed enthusiasm about the Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) initiated by Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and confirmed Vietnam’s readiness to collaborate for the upcoming AZEC high-level meeting in Japan.
The meeting recognized the efforts by ministries of both countries to finalize a cooperation document on energy transition and to address hurdles faced by Japanese energy projects in Vietnam, as well as to expand partnerships in biomass, offshore wind energy, and rare earth element development.
Minister Dien acknowledged Japanese business cooperation and noted ongoing efforts to expedite energy projects involving companies from both nations.
He reiterated the Vietnamese Government’s commitment to fostering foreign investment projects that align with the country’s energy transition goals and its ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
The event culminated in the ministers witnessing the exchange of several cooperation documents between Vietnamese and Japanese enterprises.