I. ANNOUNCEMENT

1. Vice President VoThi Anh Xuan attends the 6^th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures (CICA), attends a number bilateral activities in Kazakhstan and pays a visit to Croatia, from 09 to 14 October.

At the invitation of the President of Kazakhstan Kassym-JomartTokayev, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan will attend the 6th Summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA) and attend a number of bilateral activities in Kazakhstan. She will also pay a visit to Croatia at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Croatia Andrej Plenkovic from 9-14 October 2022. The 6th CICA Summit takes place at the 30th anniversary of CICA.

Viet Nam joined CICA in 2010 and has since been making active and proactive contributions to the common interests of CICA. The CICA Secretariat and other countries highly appreciate Viet Nam’s achievements in socio-economic development, Covid-19 prevention and control, and Viet Nam’s position and contributions in handling regional and international issues.

Regarding Viet Nam and Kazakhstan, the two countries have an excellent traditional friendship. This year marks the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations (1992-2022). The two sides have maintained exchanges of delegations at all levels, particularly at the high-level, and closely coordinated and supported each other at multilateral fora. In 2021, despite the Covid-19 pandemic, bilateral trade turnover still reached 623 million USD, nearly three times higher than before the implementation of the Free Trade Agreement, which Viet Nam and the Eurasian Economic Union, of which Kazakhstan is a member, signed in 2015.

Regarding Viet Nam and Croatia, both countries have a traditional friendship. Recently, the two sides have conducted multiple meetings at the sideline of various multilateral fora as well as periodic political consultations between the two foreign ministries. Economic cooperation potential remains considerable, and trade turnover in recent years has witnessed a steady rise.

During the visit, Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan is expected to attend and deliver a keynote speech at the Plenary session of the 6th CICA Summit, hold meetings with the CICA Executive Director and bilateral meetings with the Heads of Delegation attending the Summit, pay courtesy calls on and hold talks with the senior leaders of Kazakhstan, Croatia among other bilateral activities.

II. Q&A

1. Phoenix:Police have found Chinese-issued ID cards in the wallets of 2 of the 7 bodies discovered from noon to afternoon of 29 September on Phu Quoc beach. What have the authorities done to identify them? Has there been anynew information on the case?

Shortly after receiving information about the discovery of a number of bodies suspected to be those of Chinese citizens on the coast of Phu Quoc, Kien Giang Province, the Kien Giang provincial authorities promptly discussed with the Chinese Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City, conducted verification, investigation, and settlement of the case, including taking samples to further identify the victim's identity and background, clarify the cause of death and handle post-mortem issues in accordance with Vietnamese law.
2. Dan Viet: Last week, there were new developments regarding the role of certain officers based at home and abroad in the COVID-19 rescue flights. What is the position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on these cases? Are there gaps in staff management? Following the recent prosecutions of officers related to these rescue flights, what has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs done to ensure the responsibility and work ethics of the staff?

On 04 October 2022, the Ministry of Public Security published a notice regarding this matter.

Previously, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had suspended the individuals involved in the case to serve the investigation process. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is closely cooperating with competent agencies to investigate the case, handle the individuals responsibleand their violations in accordance with the law.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ consistent position is that all violations must be strictly handled in accordance with the Party’s guidelines and regulations, and the State’s policies and law, with no cover-up or forbidden zone.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has directed Viet Nam’s overseas representative missions to (1) increase political education, raise awareness and ethics for staff, (2) review and finalize work processes, ensure strict, efficient, transparent, and favorable conditions for the people, especially in following administrative, consular and citizen protection procedures; strictly and fully implement the check and inspection processes in accordance with the regulations of the Party and the State, (3) educate and direct each subordinate department and agency, cadre and employee on strengthening discipline, administrative principle, responsibility, and public service ethics, to maintain steadfastness and solidarity, to resolve difficulties and uphold a high sense of responsibility, striving to fulfill the objectives entrusted by the Party, State and the people.

3. Soha: What is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ comment on Russia annexing four Ukrainian oblasts including Donetsk, Lugansk, Zaporizhzhiavà Kherson?

Viet Nam follows with keen interest the recent developments surrounding the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Viet Nam calls on relevant parties to resume dialogue and resolve issues through peaceful means on the basis of respecting basic principles of international law, especially the principle of respect for independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of states.

As an active and responsible member of the international community, Viet Nam is ready to contribute to promoting dialogue and finding solutions to soon stabilize the situation, for peace and stability in the region and the world.

4. Soha: Recently, the Washington Post reported that some Vietnamese timber products imported into the US market were originally from Russia. Can you provide a comment on this matter?

We currently have no information on in this regard.

However, I wish to reiterate that as a member of the World Trade Organization, Viet Nam always respects and fully complies with the regulations of the WTO and international trade agreements that Vietnam is a signatory and a member to.

Viet Nam is willing to discuss with the US through existing mechanisms such as the Framework Agreement on Trade and Investment to promptly resolve arising problems, contributing to strengthening the bilateral economic - trade - investment relations for the benefit of businesses and peoples of the two countries.

5. NHK: Recently, there have been a number of cases where Vietnamese nationals who have been victims to human trafficking in Cambodia have escaped back to Viet Nam. Can you provide a comment on this matter, and what measures is the Government of Viet Nam implementing to prevent and resolve this?

This is a topic of great attention recently. Relevant Vietnamese authorities have actively and urgently cooperated closely with their Cambodian counterparts to handle the situation.

Viet Nam’s representative missions in Cambodia have closely followed the local situation, maintained regular contact with the Vietnamese community, actively coordinated with Cambodian authorities to strengthen the screening and expand the investigation, verification and rescue of Vietnamese citizens who have been scammed and illegally brokered. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and domestic authorities have also actively and effectively cooperated to quickly arrange necessary procedures to repatriate the citizens. To date, more than 1000citizens have been rescued home, thousands of other citizens have been supported in relevant procedures.

Ministries, branches and localities in Viet Nam have also fostered cooperation in strengthening communication, information dissemination and instructing the people, companies, factories, and enterprises, to obey the law and proactively avoid acts enticing and deceiving Vietnamese people into work abroad illegally, strengthening control at border gate areas, and at the same time taking measures to educate and strictly handle violators to deter and improve the effectiveness of prevention measures.
In the time to come, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese representative missions in Cambodia will continue to coordinate with domestic and local authorities as well as Cambodia’s relevant agencies to follow closely the situation of Vietnamese workers in Cambodia; quickly support, rescue and bring home the citizens who have been scammed or illegally brokered, ensuring the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese citizens.

We will also continue working with domestic news agencies to further enhance measures to disseminate information to the people.

6. Central News Agency: Viet Nam has attracted a number of foreign visitors after reopening tourism. Recently, Chinese Taipei also announced that it would remove quarantine for foreign entrants. China Airlines also announced the launching of a direct flight route from Taoyuan Airport to Da Nang - Vietnam, starting from January 2 next year, with 5 flights/week. What is Viet Nam’s comment on China Airlines’ plan?

Viet Nam has always supported the establishment of international routes to and from localities in the region, thereby helping to enhance people-to-people exchanges and promote mutually beneficial cooperation in economy, trade and tourism and other fields between Vietnam and its partners.

7. Central News Agency: Currently, the visa application procedure for foreign visitors to Viet Nam is quite complicated, some individuals from Chinese Taipei who wish to apply for a visa to Viet Nam have to spend no less than 300 USD, which is much higher than the pre-pandemic rate. Can you elaborate on the reasons for this and are there possible solutions to this issue?

From March 15, 2022, the Government of Vietnam has decided to resume the pre-pandemic immigration policy, including the resumption of visa procedures and processes in accordance with the 2014 Law on Entry, Exit, Transit and Residence of Foreigners, its amendments and supplements in 2019, and other guiding documents. This is to create favorable conditions for tourists, experts and investors foreigners entering Viet Nam, contributing to post-pandemic economic recovery and development.

As stipulated by the Law, foreigners entering Viet Nam for tourism purposes need to be invited and guaranteed by an agency, organization or individual to carry out entry permit application procedures at the Immigration Department of the Ministry of Public Security. Upon approval, the foreigners can receive the visas at Vietnamese representative missions abroad. In addition, citizens of some countries can apply for an electronic visa to enter Viet Nam for tourism by visiting the official website of the Immigration Department to submit documents, fees and receive visas by email. The type and duration of the visa is decided by the Immigration Department.

For its part, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has proactively and actively suggested policies and measures to the Government to open the country, notably to resume visa exemption policies for citizens of 13 countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has also directed Vietnamese representative missions abroad to thoroughly grasp the Prime Minister's policy on creating favorable conditions for foreigners to enter Viet Nam. In the time to come, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to coordinate with relevant ministries and branches to record feedbacks from domestic and foreign citizens and businesses, study and make suggestions to the Government on other options to create better conditions for international tourists to enter Viet Nam, meeting the requirements of the new development stage.

8. Central News Agency: There has been information that conflict may break out in the Taiwan Strait. What is Viet Nam’s response, should this happen?

Viet Nam is closely following the current situation in the Taiwan Strait. Viet Nam believes that peace, stability and cooperation at the Strait are of great importance to the region and the world, given the many complicated developments in the current regional and international context.

Pursuing the "One China" policy, Viet Nam calls on relevant parties to exercise restraint, refrain from increasing tensions in the Taiwan Strait, and actively contribute to maintaining peace and stability, promote cooperation and development of the region and the world.

9. Thanh nien: Can you provide more information on the citizen protection measures in the Philippines’ rescue of 14 Vietnamese human trafficking victims who were held in Paranaque?

Immediately after receiving the information and following the direction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of Viet Nam in the Philippines contacted the local authorities to verify information and contact the detained individuals to learn more about the case. The Embassy stands ready to take necessary citizen protection measures and protect the legitimate rights and interests of Vietnamese nationals.

According to the Embassy, on October 5, 2022, 13 out of 14 Vietnamese nationals were released. One of them is being cared for at the Philippine Center for Women and Children due to having contracted Covid-19.