Japan, Vietnam to launch foreign affairs, defense dialogue framework

By Aamir Latif

ANKARA (AA) - Japan and Vietnam have agreed to establish a foreign affairs and defense dialogue framework aimed at working together on defense equipment and technology collaboration, Tokyo-based Kyodo News reported on Monday.

In a joint statement issued after talks in Vietnam's capital Hanoi, visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh also pledged to maintain and enhance multilateral free trade in an apparent response to US President Donald Trump's tariff moves.

The two sides agreed to hold the first meeting of their vice-ministerial "two-plus-two" security dialogue, designed to strengthen their "strategic communication," this year in Japan.

Hanoi could seek defense-related aid from Tokyo, as Japan is considering adding Vietnam to a list of eligible defense equipment recipients under a program aimed at helping like-minded countries boost their security capabilities.

It could make Vietnam the fourth recipient of Japan's Official Security Assistance scheme, which started in 2023, among members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, following the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

The two leaders also agreed to collaborate on beefing up Vietnam's maritime security capabilities.

The two nations, the statement added, will explore the possibility of cooperation in fields including semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and quantum technologies, while promoting decarbonization and digitalization efforts.

Ishiba will also visit the Philippines on the second leg of his Southeast Asia trip, as part of Japan's ramped-up security ties with ASEAN states in recent years, with China intensifying its military activities in the South China Sea, one of the world's busiest sea routes.

China has been deepening economic ties with many ASEAN members with President Xi Jinping visiting Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia earlier this month.