January 20, 2026 Results of Visit to the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam by Mr. HAYASHI, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications

Mr. HAYASHI Yoshimasa, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications visited the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam from January 14 to 16, 2026. Minister HAYASHI attended the 5th ASEAN-Japan Digital Ministers’ Meeting and co-chaired the meeting with Minister from Viet Nam, as the host country. He also held meetings with Ministers from Viet Nam, Cambodia and Singapore, and he paid a courtesy call on H.E. Mr. Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of Viet Nam.

The results of his visit are as follows.

From January 14 to 16, 2026, Mr. HAYASHI Yoshimasa, Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications visited the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam and attended the 5th ASEAN-Japan Digital Ministers’ Meeting.

Minister HAYASHI co-chaired the 5th ASEAN-Japan Digital Ministers’ Meeting with H.E. Mr. Nguyen Manh Hung, Minister of Science and Technology of Viet Nam, as the host country. In the meeting, “ASEAN-Japan Digital Work Plan 2026,” outlining cooperation and coordination measures in the ICT field for the coming year, was proposed and welcomed, and “ASEAN-Japan Digital Ministers’ Joint Statement on Promoting Safe, Secure and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence” was adopted to deepen ASEAN-Japan cooperation in the field of AI.

During his visit, Minister HAYASHI held meetings with Ministers from Viet Nam, Cambodia and Singapore and he exchanged on future cooperation and collaboration related to digital infrastructure, including AI, 5G and Open RAN.

In particular, with Cambodia, a signing ceremony between Minister HAYASHI and H.E. Dr. Chea Vandeth, Minister of Post and Telecommunications of Cambodia was held for “the Joint Minutes on Cooperation for Development of the Digital Economy and Society in Cambodia” to further strengthen cooperation in the digital field.

Furthermore, Minister HAYASHI requested the support of ministers from participating countries for the incumbent Director of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, Mr. ONOE Seizo, whom Japan has re-nominated for the election, and for Mr. HORIKAWA Ryo, whom Japan has nominated for election as Deputy Secretary General of Asia-Pacific Telecommunity (APT).

During the courtesy call on Prime Minister Chinh, discussions were held on enhanced cooperation in digital fields such as AI, 5G, and all-photonics networks, as well as in other areas under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

In addition, Minister HAYASHI held a meeting with leaders from Japanese companies operating in Viet Nam and visited a hospital conducting a demonstration project of AI-assisted medical imaging diagnostics.