Hanoi (AsiaNews) - Strengthening bilateral economic cooperation, including the possibility of building a nuclear plant for civilian purposes in Vietnam, and again, strengthening the cooperation and control of waters in the Asia-Pacific area to counter the growing "imperialism" of China. These are the goals of Hanoi and Tokyo for the near future, outlined in the context of the "Japan-Vietnam Joint Statement" for 2013, celebrating forty years since the birth of diplomatic relations between the two countries (September 1973). At the basis of "the development of a strategic partnership" for peace and prosperity in Asia.
Last January, the Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made an official trip to Vietnam and two other countries in South-East Asia. During the visit, he signed an agreement with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung aimed at "strengthening bilateral relations." And for the future the aim is to strengthen the ongoing process of collaboration.
According to the Japanese newsagency Kyodo, the Tokyo government has invited the leader of Vietnam to Japan in March 2014, for an official visit where as a "guest of honor" in the context of a solemn ceremony. This is the highest award of the Land of the Rising Sun to a foreign leader, which aims to really "tighten" relations with Hanoi.
Disputes over territorial claims in the Pacific will also be discussed, in an attempt to contain growing Chinese expansionism. In particular, Japan must contain Beijing's claims on the Senkaku / Diaoyu in the East China Sea, while Vietnam - and other countries in South-East Asia, including the Philippines - have long been engaged in a dispute that revolves around the Paracel and Spratlys in the South China Sea.
The economy will also be key in strengthening the strategic partnership. Among the various projects in the pipeline, Vietnam's first nuclear power for civilian purposes. Experts are studying the most favorable locations for the creation of a nuclear plant. However, many Vietnamese and international experts have doubts about the safety of nuclear power and the impact on the environment, especially in view of the devastating nuclear accident in Fukushima.
