Minister of Justice Lê Thành Long. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Minister of Justice Lê Thành Long has been recently authorised by the Prime Minister to submit a report to the National Assembly concerning mutual legal assistance activities in 2023.

As outlined in the report, the Government and the Prime Minister have maintained their commitment to overseeing the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, and have called upon the Supreme People's Court and Supreme People's Procuracy to closely collaborate in comprehensively executing key tasks across all four dimensions of mutual legal assistance: civil, criminal, extradition, and the transfer of individuals serving prison sentences.

Within the realm of mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, the Prosecutor General of the Supreme People's Procuracy has led successful negotiations for three bilateral agreements in partnership with various ministries and branches.

Furthermore, in accordance with the President's authorisation, the Prosecutor General of the Supreme People's Procuracy has signed five bilateral agreements.

Regarding the field of extradition and the transfer of individuals serving prison sentences, the Ministry of Public Security has overseen and coordinated negotiations for ten bilateral agreements. With the President's authorisation, the Minister of Public Security has signed seven bilateral agreements, including three extradition agreements with Argentina, Iran, Italy, United Arab Emirates, and Laos, and four agreements for the transfer of individuals serving prison sentences with Argentina, Iran, Italy, and Kazakhstan.

Additionally, negotiations have successfully concluded for three agreements.

In terms of implementing judicial mandates, the Justice Minister stated that in 2023, Việt Nam has dispatched 2,385 civil legal mandates to foreign countries and received 1,830 responses. Foreign counterparts have submitted 1,033 legal mandates to Việt Nam and received 1,231 responses. In comparison to 2022, Vietnamese legal mandates sent abroad have increased by 245, while foreign legal mandates sent to Việt Nam have decreased by 29. The number of judicial mandate responses has risen to 184 and 148 documents, respectively, in both directions.

For criminal cases, Việt Nam has dispatched 377 judicial mandates abroad and received 217 responses. Foreign countries have submitted 89 requests to Việt Nam and received 72 responses. This represents a 42.8 per cent increase in criminal justice mandates sent abroad by Việt Nam compared to 2022, with a corresponding increase in responses.

Although the number of foreign legal mandates sent to Việt Nam has decreased, the response rate has increased by 12 per cent.

Regarding the execution of extradition requests, data from the Ministry of Public Security reveals that in 2023, Việt Nam has sent 13 extradition requests to foreign countries. Currently, the Ministry of Public Security is in ongoing discussions with partners to fulfill any necessary document requirements.

Furthermore, the Ministry of Public Security, in collaboration with relevant authorities, has facilitated the extradition of two individuals requesting extradition to the Russian Federation.

In addition to the aforementioned activities, Việt Nam has received four requests to transfer individuals serving prison sentences from Việt Nam to foreign countries and has sent 40 transfer requests from abroad to Việt Nam. According to the minister, these requests are being processed in accordance with legal provisions, including nationality verification and related information. The Ministry of Public Security has already transferred one case to the competent court for consideration.

With respect to cases of transfers from Việt Nam to foreign countries, the Ministry of Public Security has transferred two cases to competent courts, while ongoing discussions are underway for the remaining two cases with foreign counterparts.

Furthermore, the police have coordinated with relevant authorities to repatriate three prisoners (one Korean national and two Australian nationals) for the continuation of their prison sentences in their home countries.

To address limitations and deficiencies, the Government has articulated its intent to provide guidance and proposals for the development of the Law on Mutual Legal Assistance in Civil Matters, the Law on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, the Law on Extradition, and the Law on Transfer of Individuals Serving Prison Sentences.

These initiatives will be incorporated into the 2025 law and ordinance building programme. Additionally, there will be an emphasis on promoting research activities and proposing the signing of bilateral international treaties. — VNS