HANOI: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Minh Chinh, on Sunday agreed to oppose any use of weapons of mass destruction including nuclear arms.

The two leaders confirmed their opposition to threats to use weapons of mass destruction and actual use of the weapons, after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s repeated threats to use nuclear arms amid his country’s invasion of Ukraine.

At their meeting in the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, Kishida and Chinh also affirmed the importance of respecting Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

They sought an immediate ceasefire and underlined the importance of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.

“Any change to status quo by force is unacceptable in any regions,” Kishida told a joint press conference with Chinh.

The Vietnamese leader called for dialogue among concerned parties for a peaceful resolution. He also pledged 500,000 dollars in humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

Vietnam historically has close ties with Russia, including through imports of weapons. The Southeast Asian country has not joined international moves to sanction Russia for its aggression of Ukraine.

Kishida welcomed Vietnam’s humanitarian aid, characterizing it as a “positive step” when he spoke to reporters.

“Some countries cannot take the same action as the Group of Seven countries. But it is important to make efforts to adjust basic opinions among Asian countries,” Kishida said.

Regarding China’s maritime expansion in the East and South China seas, Kishida said, “Vietnam is an important partner playing a key role in realizing a free and open Indo-Pacific region.”

The two leaders shared the view that any attempts to change the status quo by force are unacceptable.

Kishida told Chinh that Japan will help Vietnam improve its military’s cyber capabilities.

They agreed on a plan to set up a website to make it easier to find proper organizations related to the dispatch of technical intern trainees from Vietnam to Japan. The agreement followed a series of financial and other problems Vietnamese trainees suffered.

Kishida and Chinh met as government leaders for the third time. Chinh visited Japan in November last year, becoming the first foreign leader received by Kishida since he took office in October that year.

Kishida also met with Nguyen Phu Trong, general secretary of the Central Committee of Vietnam’s Communist Party, and Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

JIJI Press