Delegates at the event. (Photo: NDO/To Minh)

Politburo member, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and Chairwoman of its Organisation Commission Truong Thi Mai made the remarks while addressing the seventh congress of the Vietnam-Japan Friendship Association under the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) held in Hanoi on March 23.

Since its inception in 1965, the association has made significant contributions to enhancing the friendship, mutual understanding and trust between Vietnamese and Japanese people, Mai said.

She urged the association to consolidate and expand its network of partners and work to improve the efficiency of cooperation between people’s organisations of the two countries.

The association should uphold its role in promoting cooperation between Vietnam and Japan in various fields, especially high-tech, health care, education, personnel training, digital transformation, environmental protection and climate change response, Mai said.

She also asked the association to mobilise the support of Japanese people for Vietnam’s national construction and defence, and encourage businesses, intellectuals and youths, particularly young Vietnamese people in Japan, to participate in people-to-people diplomacy activities.

According to To Huy Rua, president of the association for the sixth tenure, about 450,000 Vietnamese are working and living in Japan, of whom more than 200,000 are trainees, the biggest number in the country.

He highlighted Japan’s assistance to Vietnam during the COVID-19 pandemic combat, as well as Vietnam’s support for Japanese firms operating in the Southeast Asian nation.

In his remarks, Japanese Ambassador Yamada Takio also stressed the huge potential for the Vietnam-Japan relationship, which, he said, is set to enter an important period to grow stronger.

He said the association has played a crucial role in maintaining and strengthening the Vietnam-Japan relations, and expressed his hope that the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties next year would help to bring the two countries and their people closer.

The congress elected a 62-member executive board, with To Huy Rua re-elected as president for the seventh tenure.

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Source: Nhan Dan Online