Among the hosts at the port, Kato Hitoshi, Chairman of the Japan-Vietnam Friendship Association of Sakai city distinguished himself with a cap embroidered with the Vietnam People’s Navy’s badge, a souvenir from the Vietnamese delegation.
    |
 |
|
Ship 015-Tran Hung Dao leaving the port city of Sakai, Osaka prefecture |
During their stay in Japan, Hitoshi actively supported the Vietnamese delegation in preparing the smallest details of banquets for the guests to their visits and exchanges in Sakai city, Kyoto-former capital of Japan, and Osaka city. Hitoshi’s support and care for the crew of Ship 015-Tran Hung Dao during its visit to Sakai showed his sincere sentiment to the Vietnamese friends.
Like Kato Hitoshi, quite a few people in Japan love and have good memories of Vietnam. Sakai Mayor Osami Takeyama is one of them. In his guest room always hangs an embroidery painting of Chua Cau (Bridge Pagoda), a cultural landmark of Japan in Hoi An city, the central province of Quang Nam, Vietnam. Takeyama Osami is a sociable man and he is wholeheartedly willing to promote the cooperation between the two countries.
Talking with the Vietnamese delegation, Takeyama Osami many times mentioned the potential of the two nations for further development and cooperation.
In his capacity as a Sakai mayor, he briefed the Vietnamese guests on the city’s needs and strengths in the hope that the two sides could see them as opportunities for investment and trade cooperation.
Actually, the Sakai Mayor is not strange to the S-shaped country. He has three times visited Vietnam and traveled from the North to the South to look for opportunities for and seek measures to boost cooperation between Sakai and Vietnam. Though being very busy, every time he visited Vietnam he always spent time visiting Hoi An, contemplating Japan’s cultural relics and offering incense to the Japanese who had lived, worked and laid foundations for commercial and cultural exchanges between the two countries centuries before.
Due to the short courtesy visit, the Japanese host introduced to the guests various brochures of the cooperation potentials, economic and cultural strengths of Sakai city in particular and Osaka prefecture in general. Details of the brochures on Sakai’s traditional industry, Osaka’s world cultural heritages, and the general view of Sakai for any businesses were very useful to the city’s special guests from Ship 015-Tran Hung Dao of the Vietnam People’s Navy during their stay in the city.
Before saying goodbye, Senior Colonel Le Hong Chien, Vietnamese head delegate, thanked the Sakai authorities and people for their warm reception. The Vietnamese officer stressed the significance of the presence of Ship 015-Tran Hung Dao in Japan, especially at the time when the two Governments and peoples are carrying out a string of practical activities to mark the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Before heading for the Republic of Korea to join an international fleet review at Jeju naval base, Ship 015-Tran Hung Dao anchored at Osaka Bay and held a ceremony to commemorate former Party General Secretary Do Muoi who passed away on October 1 in Hanoi. After observing a minute’s silence, Senior Colonel Le Hong Chien gave a brief on Do Muoi’s great contributions to the revolutionary cause of the Party, people and military of Vietnam. He affirmed that ship 015-Tran Hung Dao’s implementation of defense external tasks this time aims to realize the Party and State’s foreign policy of multi-lateralization and diversification of international relations on the basis of independence, self-reliance, to which former Party General Secretary Do Muoi had made great contributions.
Translated by Mai Huong