Vietnam, China holds meeting on cooperation in drug prevention

HANOI -- China and Vietnam on Tuesday held the fourth bilateral conference on cooperation in drug prevention and control in Vietnam's capital Hanoi.

Speaking at the conference, Hoang Anh Tuyen, deputy head of the Standing Office on Drugs and Crime under Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security, said the Vietnam-China border remains a hot spot for drug-related crimes.

According to the office, since the last bilateral conference in China's Hubei province in November 2013, the two countries have worked together to devise a joint action plan to tackle drug crimes along the joint border.

The police departments of seven Vietnamese provinces and the China's Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have exchanged information on drug trafficking rings, the office said.

Meanwhile, Liu Yuejin, standing deputy secretary-general of China's National Narcotics Control Commission, said the majority of methamphetamine and heroin transported across the China-Vietnam border originated in the "Golden Triangle."

During the conference, Liu shared experiences of Chinese police force in running drug raids, and hoped for a stronger partnership with Vietnam in the field.

Since 2013, the Customs of Vietnam have uncovered 15 drug smuggling cases based on the information provided by its Chinese counterpart, seizing over 21.2 kg of heroin, according to Vietnam' s state-run news agency VNA.

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