Minister of Foreign Affairs receives Japan’s Tochigi Governor
Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung on December 16 received Fukuda Tomikazu, Governor of Japan’s Tochigi prefecture, who is on a working visit to Vietnam.
Trung warmly welcomed the visit, noting that it comes at a time when the Vietnam–Japan Comprehensive Strategic Partnership is growing strongly, effectively, and practically across all areas.
The minister thanked the Tochigi administration for its consistent support and active promotion of cooperation with Vietnam over the years.
Appreciating the investment activities of more than 20 Tochigi enterprises operating in Vietnam, he stressed that cooperation at the local level has become increasingly substantive and serves as an effective channel for advancing Vietnam–Japan relations.
Trung suggested that Tochigi continue to effectively implement signed agreements and further strengthen cooperation in areas that can create new development momentum for Vietnam, such as science and technology, digital transformation, innovation, and the training of high-quality human resources, according to VNA.
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| Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung (right) meets with Fukuda Tomikazu, Governor of Japan’s Tochigi prefecture in Hanoi on December 16. (Photo: Courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) |
He also expressed hope that the prefecture would continue to pay attention to and support the Vietnamese community living and working in Tochigi. Fukuda congratulated Vietnam on its impressive accomplishments and the progress made by its people over the past 80 years since the country was founded.
Agreeing with the views shared by Trung, he spoke highly of Vietnam’s development potential, investment environment and human resources. Informing his host that Tochigi had successfully organised the third Vietnam Festival in the prefecture, which attracted nearly 5,000 participants, Fukuda affirmed that the Tochigi authorities always value and are committed to expanding cooperation with Vietnam, including with Phu Tho province.
He also reiterated the prefecture’s determination to continue creating favourable conditions for nearly 10,000 Vietnamese people living and working in Tochigi, thereby contributing to further strengthening the Vietnam–Japan friendship and cooperation. During his visit to Vietnam, the Japanese Governor is scheduled to visit and work with Phu Tho province.
JICA praised for contributions to Vietnam’s development over past 30 years
Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu hosted a reception in Hanoi on December 16 for Yoneda Gen, Director-General of the Southeast Asia and Pacific Department of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), during which he appreciated JICA’s role and practical contributions to Vietnam’s development over more than three decades.
Vu highlighted the agency’s support for the country’s major ODA projects such as Bai Chay Bridge, Nhat Tan Bridge, Ho Chi Minh City’s Metro Line No.1, and Cho Ray Hospital.
Sharing and agreeing with Yoneda’s views, the official called on the two sides to continue close coordination to advance cooperation projects in line with agreements reached by high-ranking leaders, ensuring timely ground-breaking and implementation as committed.
He also expressed his hope that JICA will continue to urge the Japanese Government to consider providing Vietnam with next-generation ODA loans to support the country’s key, large-scale projects, VNA reported.
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| Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu (R) receives Yoneda Gen, Director-General of JICA's Southeast Asia and Pacific Department, on December 16. (Photo: VNA) |
For his part, Yoneda thanked the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs for its active and effective collaboration in promoting the implementation of Japanese ODA-funed projects.
He reaffirmed that JICA attaches great importance to Vietnam – Japan relations, noting that Japanese businesses highly value Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements and are eager to expand investment and business operations in the country in the coming period.
Concuring with Vu’s remarks, he affirmed that JICA will continue its efforts to support Vietnam’s development and closely coordinate with Vietnamese ministries, sectors and relevant agencies to accelerate key ODA cooperation projects, including the Vietnam – Japan University project, the Cho Ray Hospital project, as well as those on climate change response and disaster-resilient rural development in northern mountainous provinces.
Vietnam to be among world’s top 15 trading nations by this year-end
Vietnam’s total trade volume in 2025 is estimated to reach a record high of US$920 billion, placing the country among the world’s top 15 trading nations.
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| Photo: VGP |
The above figure was released at a seminar on solutions for high and sustainable export growth which was held by the Import–Export Department, under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, in Ha Noi on December 16.
Director General of the Import–Export Department Nguyen Anh Son said, the 2020–2025 period marks a strong breakthrough in Vietnam's trading activities, with average annual export growth of around 10 percent.
Since 2023, the nation has joined the group of the global 20 largest exporting economies. Notably, Vietnam has maintained a continuous trade surplus over the past decade, making an important contribution to stable foreign currency inflows, easing pressure on the exchange rate, and strengthening the country's foreign exchange reserves.
The nation will gain US$470 billion from exporting by the end of this year, up 16 percent against the previous year, affirming the country as one of the world's most open economies and a bright spot in the regional and global trade landscape.
Total trade with the rest of the world rose from a modest US$13.40 billion in 1995 to a record US$786.9 billion in 2024, an increase of about 58.7 times over 29 years.
CNN names Vietnamese Beef Pho among world’s top 20 best soups
Cable News Network (CNN) has released its top 20 best soups in the world, including Vietnamese Pho Bò (Beef Pho).
According to CNN, broth is simmered for hours with cinnamon, star anise and other warm spices to create a wonderfully aromatic base for this rice noodle soup.
It also quoted Andrea Nguyen, author of “The Pho Cookbook”, as saying that Pho is among Vietnam’s most recognized culinary exports, but the soup is a relatively new food.
The author shared that while today’s Pho restaurants serve a wide range of flavors, beef is the original. By 1930, she explained, the soup was served with slices of raw beef cooked gently in the broth.
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| Vietnamese beef pho ranks among the world’s top 20 soups (Photo: Getty) |
“Beef Pho remains the most beloved version in Vietnam, with options that include the original raw beef, a mix of raw and cooked beef, brisket and tendon”, Andrea Nguyen concluded.
Rounding off the list of top 20 best soups selected by CNN were Banga of Nigeria, Borscht of Ukraine, Bouillabaisse of France, Caldo verde of Portugal, Chorba frik of Algeria, Libya and Tunisia, Chupe de camarones of Peru, Gazpacho of Spain, Groundnut soup of West Africa, Gumbo of the US, Harira of Morocco, Kharcho of Georgia, Lanzhou beef noodle soup of China, Mohinga of Myanmar, Moqueca de camarão of Brazil, Soto ayam of Indonesia, Tom yum goong of Thailand, Tonkotsu ramen of Japan, and Yayla çorbasi of Turkey.
Earlier, The Nation, an English-language daily of Thailand, also named Vietnamese Pho among the Top 4 most healthy and yummy dishes in ASEAN while international food magazine TasteAtlas ranked the dish 34th out of 100 most popular dishes in the world.
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