Nguyễn Hoàng Linh, director of the Việt Nam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety delivers a statement on behalf of Việt Nam at the plenary sitting of the 70th Regular Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Austria. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Nguyễn Hoàng Linh, director of the Việt Nam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety, has affirmed the country’s consistent policy of developing and applying nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, serving socio-economic development, ensuring energy security and promoting sustainable development, at the plenary sitting of the 70th Regular Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Austria.

Held from September 14 to 18, the event is an important annual policy forum where IAEA member states review the agency’s activities and discuss major issues concerning the peaceful use of nuclear energy, nuclear safety and security, safeguards and nuclear non-proliferation, technical cooperation, and the application of nuclear science and technology in healthcare, agriculture and the environment.

Delivering Việt Nam’s national statement, Linh said the Southeast Asian nation is implementing its strategy for the development and application of atomic energy for peaceful purposes through 2035, with a vision to 2050, while preparing the necessary conditions for its Ninh Thuận nuclear power projects, nuclear sci-tech centre, and new research reactor.

Việt Nam stressed that nuclear programmes and projects must be implemented responsibly and transparently, with safety, security and nuclear non-proliferation given the highest priority.

On the sidelines of the conference, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Lê Xuân Định, head of the Vietnamese delegation, held working sessions with Karine Herviou, IAEA Deputy Director General and head of the Department of Nuclear Safety and Security; Najat Mokhtar, IAEA Deputy Director General and head of the Department of Nuclear Sciences and Applications; and leaders of the IAEA’s Department of Nuclear Energy.

The discussions focused on strengthening IAEA support for Việt Nam in developing nuclear power infrastructure, completing the regulatory framework, enhancing nuclear safety and security capabilities, developing human resources, and promoting the application of nuclear science and technology.

Also as part of the General Conference, Định and the delegation held working sessions with Alexander Trembitsky, chairman of Russia’s Federal Environmental, Industrial and Nuclear Supervision Service (Rostechnadzor), and Evgeniy Abakumov, deputy director general of the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, to discuss steps to implement cooperation agreements and explore further areas of cooperation in which Russia has strengths, including quantum technology, fusion research and the application of artificial intelligence in the nuclear energy sector.

The Việt Nam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety also held meetings with IAEA specialised units responsible for legal affairs, safeguards, nuclear security and technical cooperation, as well as exchanges with the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission of the Republic of Korea (NSSC), the World Institute for Nuclear Security (WINS), the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC), and other international partners.

The Việt Nam Atomic Energy Institute, meanwhile, attended the 55th General Conference Meeting of national representatives of the Regional Co-operative Agreement for Research, Development and Training Related to Nuclear Science and Technology (RCA).

It also held bilateral meetings with several partners to accelerate implementation of a nuclear science and technology research centre project, featuring a new research reactor in the southern Vietnamese province of Đồng Nai; discuss cooperation in providing consultancy for the Ninh Thuận nuclear power projects; and promote research, development, applications and human resource training in the nuclear sector. — VNA/VNS