President arrives in Tokyo for late Japanese PM's funeral

President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and a high-ranking Party and State delegation arrive in Tokyo on September 25.

The state funeral, due to take place on September 27, is the second of its kind held for a former Japanese Prime Minister since World War II, following the first for late PM Yoshida Shigeru in 1967.

About 6,000 foreign guests, including heads of state, government leaders and representatives of foreign countries, are expected to attend the event.

President Phuc is also scheduled to attend a reception for delegation heads to be hosted by the Japanese Emperor and hold talks with PM Kishida Fumio and meetings with representatives from Japan’s National Diet and localities, as well as some delegation heads.

The former Japanese PM passed away at Nara Medical University in Nara prefecture on July 8. Earlier the same day, he was shot from behind while campaigning for a candidate of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) in the prefecture.

Abe, 67, was Japan's longest-serving PM. He stayed in this position from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020.

He signed the Japan-Vietnam Joint Statement “Toward a Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity in Asia” in 2006, setting the first milestone for the strategic partnership between the two countries, and signed another joint statement upgrading the relationship to an extensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia in March 2014.

Source: VNA