At the ceremony presenting 200 cherry blossom trees from Japan to Tay Ninh at the cultural programme. (Photo: VNA)  

A week-long Vietnam-Japan cultural programme officially commenced on the evening of December 1 atop Ba Den Mountain in the southwestern province of Tay Ninh, marking the first event of its kind in the region.

Co-organised by the provincial People’s Committee and Tay Ninh Sun JSC, a subsidiary of Sun Group, it lasts until December 8, offering a rich blend of Japanese culture and Tay Ninh’s traditional cultural heritage.

As part of the event, Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Ito Naoki presented 200 cherry blossom trees to the province for planting on the top of the mountain, symbolising friendship and collaboration.

In his remarks, the ambassador highlighted the Vietnam-Japan comprehensive strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in Asia and the world and stated that Japan highly values and wishes to strengthen the ties in various fields, including tourism as well as people-to-people and locality-to-locality exchanges.

Ito expressed his hope that the cultural week would attract more Japanese tourists to Vietnam and Tay Ninh, and vice versa.

Nguyen Lam Nhi Thuy, CEO of Tay Ninh Sun JSC, said that the event is to honour the traditional cultures of both nations. She described the occasion as a milestone for the Ba Den Mountain national tourism area, aiming to establish it as a cultural bridge between Vietnam and Japan.

Earlier in the day, Nguyen Thanh Ngoc, Vice Secretary of the Tay Ninh Party Committee and Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, received the Japanese diplomat, expressing his wish for deeper Vietnam-Japan relations and expanded Japanese investment in Tay Ninh to bolster bilateral ties in the time to come./.