Vietnam, Portugal strengthen crime prevention cooperation

At the headquarters of the Ministry of Internal Administration, Deputy Minister Le Quoc Hung met with Secretary of State and Deputy Minister of Internal Administration Paulo Simoes Ribeiro.

At the meeting, the two sides highly valued the positive development of cooperative relations between Vietnam and Portugal, as well as the growing partnership between the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security (MPS) and the Portuguese Ministry of Internal Administration, particularly following recent high-level visits and meetings between Party and State leaders of the two countries.

In the field of law enforcement, the two ministries officially established cooperative relations during the visit to Portugal by General To Lam (the then Minister of Public Security) in July 2023.

Since then, both sides have carried out a range of cooperation activities, including criminal investigation, information exchange via INTERPOL channels as well as providing mutual support at regional and international forums.

To advance law enforcement cooperation in a more substantive and effective manner, the two sides agreed to expedite negotiations for the signing of an intergovernmental agreement on combating crime, while promoting delegation exchanges at all levels to share experience and build capacity of law enforcement officers.

On this occasion, Deputy Minister Le Quoc Hung proposed that the Portuguese Ministry of Internal Administration support the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security in training professional pilots for the MPS Air Regiment, facilitating the exchange of young football players between the Hanoi Police Football Club and Sporting Lisbon, and ensuring the safety and security of citizens of one country residing and working legally in the other.

Next, Deputy Minister Le Quoc Hung met with Secretary of State and Deputy Minister of Justice of Portugal Ana Luisa Machado to discuss measures to establish legal frameworks for bilateral cooperation in the fields of criminal prosecution, extradition and the transfer of sentenced persons, contributing to strengthening the international criminal justice system.

Both sides acknowledged the importance of the significance of this being the first-ever working visit by a delegation from the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security to the Portuguese Ministry of Justice, highlighting it as a foundation for the two ministries to expand cooperation.

To make bilateral cooperation more practical and effective, the two sides agreed to enhance coordination through INTERPOL channels, and promote high-level and working-level delegation exchanges.

The Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam proposed that the Portuguese Ministry of Justice soon review and provide comments on the draft Extradition Treaty and Treaty on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons, saying that it would establish a solid legal foundation for future cooperation between the two sides.

As part of the visit, Deputy Minister Le Quoc Hung also met with officials of the Embassy of Vietnam in Portugal.