VN, Cambodia tie up to fight drugs

April 20, 2017 - 08:00

Việt Nam and Cambodia have agreed to enhance co-operation in the fight against drugs by instructing agencies and border localities to exchange information and co-ordinate in investigating drug trafficking.

Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam (right), chairman of the National Steering Committee for Drug, AIDS and Prostitution Prevention and Control, meets Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Ke Kim Yan, chairman of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, in Hà Nội yesterday. – VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn
Viet Nam News

HÀ NỘI – Việt Nam and Cambodia have agreed to enhance co-operation in the fight against drugs by instructing agencies and border localities to exchange information and co-ordinate in investigating drug trafficking. 

The agreement was reached between Deputy Prime Minister Vũ Đức Đam, chairman of the National Steering Committee for Drug, AIDS and Prostitution Prevention and Control, and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Ke Kim Yan, chairman of the National Authority for Combating Drugs, during their meeting in Hà Nội yesterday. 

Đam said co-operations between Việt Nam and Cambodia is essential to drug prevention and combating in each country and to addressing drug-related issues in the region. 

He highlighted growing relations between the Vietnamese and Cambodian governments thanks to regular high-level visits. The current visit to Việt Nam by Deputy PM Ke Kim Yan is expected to further promote bilateral friendship on the occasion of the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties. 

Đam affirmed that the Vietnamese Government has strengthened co-ordination with the international community and regional countries, especially those sharing border lines, in fighting drugs. 
For his part, Ke Kim Yan revealed that drug smuggling and the use of drugs in Cambodia has seen complicated developments. Cambodia is not only a market but also an entry point for drugs, he said. 
In 2016, Cambodian authorities detected some 4,000 drug trafficking cases, arresting 9,933 suspects and seizing 179kg of drugs, he added. 
He thanked Vietnamese agencies for their assistance to Cambodia in investigating cross-border drug rings. 
The Deputy PM also called for Việt Nam’s help to Cambodia to build a community-based voluntary drug detoxification centre. – VNS

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