The MoU was inked by MOST Deputy Minister Le Dinh Tien and BritishAmbassador to Vietnam Antony Stokes in Hanoi on November 28.
Under the agreement, the two sides will join hands in education andtraining, human resources development, research and development of civilnuclear power plants, and the application of radiation and radioactiveisotopes in socio-economic development.
They will alsostrengthen the management of radioactive waste and used materials whilecooperating in infrastructure, financial consultation, information andcommunications, and response to nuclear problems.
Addressingthe event, Tien underlined Vietnam’s leading and consistent policy ofgiving top priority to ensuring nuclear security and safety in usingnuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
Vietnam attachesimportance to and wishes to expand international cooperation in nuclearpower, he said, highlighting the UK’s rich experience in the applicationof nuclear energy peacefully, including the development, construction,operation, maintenance, dismantling and management of nuclear powerplants.
The MoU will create a foundation for theimplementation of future concrete cooperation programmes and projects inthis field between the two sides for mutual benefit, he said.
For his part, Antony Stokes said both Vietnam and the UK have givenimportance to energy sources that ensure environmental sustainability,security, safety and cost savings, including nuclear power.
The MoU mirrors the UK’s willingness to share its experience with Vietnam in this important source of energy, he said.
In 2010, the two Governments signed a joint statement on theirstrategic partnership which says science and technology is one of theirprioritised cooperative areas.
Over the past years, Vietnamand the UK have witnessed active developments in scientific andtechnological cooperation and atomic energy in particular.
Together, they implemented a number of projects, including a project ondecoding genes of several Vietnamese rice varieties and another toestablish a laboratory at the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology.
The UK has helped Vietnam train officials in science andtechnology and organised symposiums on nuclear safety, biologicaltechnology, medicine and pharmaceuticals.-VNA