Reporter: Will you brief us on the situation of Vietnamese trainees in Japan following the recent powerful earthquake and tsunami?

Mr Thanh: Currently, there have been around 18,000 Vietnamese trainees working in northern Japan. All 71 Vietnamese trainees in the quake-hit localities of Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, Kushiro and Ibaraki remain safe. Some trainees working near the Japanese nuclear power plants have been transferred to Tokyo.

The Board for Management of Vietnamese workers in Japan has contacted and provided all the trainees with the telephone numbers and addresses of the Vietnamese embassy in Tokyo for emergencies.

Reporter: How can the board give Vietnamese trainees timely assistance when they are in danger?

Mr Thanh: Currently, we are trying to update information on those who are in the dangerous areas.

We are also asking our staff and businesses to contact trade associations and Vietnamese trainees in the affected areas. If Vietnamese trainees still have jobs at factories, they will continue to stay there. Those working in the tsunami-affected area and near the nuclear power plants will be transferred to safer factories in Japan. If any trainee wants to return home, they will be helped to return home as soon as possible.

The number of Vietnamese trainees who have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami is quite small. We have informed trade associations and businesses to contact the Board for Management of Vietnamese workers in Japan immediately for timely assistance. In my opinion, if these trainees are worried about the radiation levels at the nuclear power plants, they can return and stay in Vietnam temporarily until they are summoned back to work in Japan.

Reporter: Thank you.