The First Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, Pham Binh Minh, noted that Vietnam has adopted the Law on Drug Prevention and Control, established the National Committee on Drug Prevention and Control, and endorsed the Master Plan and National Target Programme on Drug Prevention and Control until 2010.

He further said that the country has ratified the three UN conventions on drug control and expanded cooperation with the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and regional countries, especially those in the Mekong-sub region. Vietnam has recently signed 8 bilateral agreements on drug control with Cambodia, Laos, China, Russia, Thailand, Myanmar, Hungary and the US, Minh added.

The Vietnamese official expressed his concern about the complicated developments of drug-related crimes which are growing in a more sophisticated manner and called for international joint efforts in the prevention and control of such dangerous crimes, with the UN entities, particularly the UNODC, playing a crucial role in the fight against drug trafficking.