Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi signed agreements with Vietnamese Prime Minister Le Minh Hung to deepen cooperation on energy, critical minerals, artificial intelligence, semiconductors and space during the former's visit to Hanoi, Reuters reported on May 2. Separately, Japan signed an agreement with Indonesia on defense industrial cooperation, covering a formalized pipeline for arms sales, personnel development and disaster mitigation, while also discussing maritime security and joint exercises, Reuters reported on May 4.

The Vietnam visit reflects Japan's efforts to strengthen its strategic presence in the region, particularly as Vietnam becomes more important to Japanese manufacturers but still faces major energy, infrastructure and technology constraints. The Indonesia agreement builds on a summit in March between Japanese and Indonesian leaders and comes after Tokyo revised its defense equipment transfer rules to allow broader lethal weapons exports.