1. PM Nguyen Tan Dung to attend Viet Nam – Laos border marking completion ceremony (Jul. 9)

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and Prime Minister Thongsing Thammavong of the People's Democratic Republic of Laos will attend a ceremony on July 9th, 2013 to inaugurate Border Marker No. 460 at Thanh Thuy – Nam On Border Gate between Vietnamese Nghe An pronvince and Lao Bolikhamsay province and to celebrate the completion of the border marking work on the field along Viet Nam and Laos borderline.

This event is of great significance, marking the completion of the Project on consolidation and renovation of the national border marker system between Viet Nam and Laos on the field, thus contributing to building a borderline of peace, friendship, stability, cooperation and mutual development and promoting socio-economic development in the border region as well as the overall economic development of the two countries.

2. FM Pham Binh Minh to visit India and co-chair the 15th meeting of the Viet Nam – India Joint Commission (Jul. 10-13)

Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh will pay an official visit to India from July 10th to 13th, 2013 at the invitation of Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid of India and co-chair the 15th Meeting of the Viet Nam and India Joint Commission.

The visit takes place against the backdrop of the growing strategic partnership between Viet Nam and India in all areas. It also affirms Viet Nam’s policy of highly valuing the traditional friendship and strategic partnership with India and supporting the promotion of the India- ASEAN relations.

The two Ministers will hold talks and co-chair the 15th Meeting of the Viet Nam – India Joint Commission to review the bilateral cooperation since the 14th Meeting and discuss directions and measures to further intensify the strategic partnership in all fields between the two countries in the future as well as to exchange international and regional issues of mutual concern.

Minister Pham Binh Minh will pay courtesy calls on senior leaders of India and deliver the remarks at the Council of India on international issues.

3. Return of HEU fuel from Vietnam’s Da Lat nuclear reactor to Russia

On July 3rd, 2013, Viet Nam Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the United States National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and the Russian Federation State Atomic Energy Corporation (ROSATOM) has returned the last remaining 11 kilograms of highly enriched uranium (HEU) from Viet Nam’s Dalat Nuclear Research Institute to the Russian Federation.

This shipment manifests Vietnam’s fulfillment of commitment to the Program on Fuel Conversion for Dalat Research Reactor (DRR) from Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) to Low Enriched Uranium (LEU), within the framework of Joint Statement of the 2nd Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, Korea in March 2012 as well as IAEA’s recommendations and agreements signed with the United States and the Russian Federation.

This event reaffirmed Vietnam’s consistent policy of development and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes and of non-proliferation.  Viet Nam will continue to work closely with IAEA and the international community to ensure nuclear safety and security.