Vietnam, IAEA sign programme framework for technical cooperation

Ambassador Nguyen Trung Kien, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to IAEA (R) and Hua Liu, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Technical Cooperation (Photo: VNA)

Vienna (VNA) – The Vietnamese mission to international organisations and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on March 10 signed a Country Programme Framework (CPF) for cooperation with the agency on the sidelines of the meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors to define cooperation contents between the two sides in the 2022-2027 period.

In his speech at the signing ceremony, Ambassador Nguyen Trung Kien, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to IAEA, emphasised that the CPF between Vietnam and IAEA has special significance in the context that Vietnam will be the president of the meeting of member countries of the Regional Cooperative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology for Asia and the Pacific (RCA) in 2022 – 2023.

The Vietnamese official thanked the IAEA for its technology transfer, equipment provision and training for Vietnam, saying that the support not only helps Vietnam improve its capacity in applying nuclear technology for development in general, but also creates an important foundation for the Southeast Asian nation to successfully respond to global issues such as food security, disease, and improving the quality of agricultural products, and water sources.

Cooperation with the IAEA also helps Vietnam successfully build a team of experts in many fields related to nuclear technology, and participate in more research programmes and projects hosted or initiated by the agency, Kien said.

One of Vietnam's priorities in joining the IAEA Board of Governors for the 2022-2023 term is to cooperate with other members of the board to promote the IAEA's role in nuclear technology development for peaceful purposes, he stated.

Vietnam hopes that the IAEA will continue to focus on programmes to support developing countries to accelerate the application of nuclear technology, thus helping the process to be carried out effectively, Kien added.

Hua Liu, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Technical Cooperation said Vietnam is the first country that has signed a programme framework for cooperation with the IAEA for the period 2022-2027, stressing that this is an important document which helps the IAEA identify Vietnam's interest and needs in nuclear technology application, thereby supporting the IAEA in developing its annual technical cooperation programme.

Cooperation projects with Vietnam in the 2022-2023 period, which were approved by the IAEA Board of Governors in November 2021, are completely consistent with the content of the 2022-2027 CPF that has just been signed, he said.

Liu spoke highly of Vietnam's role in regional cooperation in nuclear technology development, especially in training and capacity building for Laos and Cambodia through the tripartite cooperation programmes between Vietnam, the IAEA and these countries.

He expressed the hope that in its upcoming role as the RCA’s president, Vietnam will further promote regional cooperation, especially in nuclear technology development and training in developing countries./.