Vietnam gives top priority to ensuring safety and security in the use of nuclear technologies for peaceful purposes, said Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Le Dinh Tien.

Tien made the affirmation at a forum jointly held in Hanoi on December 27 by the Vietnam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety and Control and the Embassy of the Republic of Korea (RoK) in Vietnam .

Vietnam always pursues a comprehensive policy on nuclear energy and supports the disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and other weapons of massive destruction, he stressed.

He said that looking towards the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, Vietnam continues supporting the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism and contributing to the international community’s common efforts in the disarmament and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons as well as in fighting all forms of terrorism.

Vietnamese authorised agencies are finalising a legal framework, building technical infrastructure and training human resources to ensure safety and security in the application of atomic energy for peaceful purposes in general and for the nuclear development programme in particular.

Participants at the forum, including policy makers and experts from Vietnam and the RoK, shared experience in ensuring nuclear security, including the participation in and enforcement of international treaties and conventions in this field.

They were briefed about the agenda of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, the RoK’s legal framework on nuclear security and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, the nuclear security situation in Vietnam, and the national nuclear response and management system in the RoK./.