Workshop on the decrees relating to the draft Law on Countering the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction

On 9 and 10 December 2025, in Hanoi, the Chemical Corps – Standing Office of the National Focal Point of Vietnam for countering the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (Standing Office 81) chaired and, in coordination with the EXBS Programme and the EU P2P Programme, organised a workshop on the decrees relating to the draft Law on Countering the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). This was the ninth workshop in a series of activities to study and improve Vietnam's legal framework for countering the proliferation of WMD, and the first in a series of workshops on drafting the documents guiding the implementation of the Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD organised by Standing Office 81 in coordination with its partners.

The workshop was attended by 35 participants representing ministries and sectors, including the Ministry of National Defence, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Justice and the State Bank, together with experts from the EXBS and EU P2P Programmes and Vietnamese legal experts.

Workshop participants pose for a group photo.

Delivering the opening remarks and guidance to the workshop, Major General Nguyen Dinh Hien, Commander of the Chemical Corps and Head of Standing Office 81, emphasised: “In the context of increasingly complex non-traditional security, the risk of WMD proliferation continues to be a serious challenge to international peace and security. Building a comprehensive and complete legal framework for countering the proliferation of WMD is an urgent task, in which the Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD is Vietnam's top priority. However, for the Law to be truly put into practice, we need a coherent, specific and feasible system of guiding documents as soon as the Law enters into force. This is the key condition enabling the competent authorities to implement it consistently, helping Vietnam to fully meet its international obligations and, more importantly, safeguarding national security against the risks of WMD proliferation and proliferation financing.”

Major General Nguyen Dinh Hien, Commander of the Chemical Corps, Head of Standing Office 81, delivers the opening remarks and guidance to the workshop.

The workshop aimed to discuss and propose the content and structure of the decrees detailing and guiding the implementation of the Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD, on the basis of reviewing the draft decrees prepared by Standing Office 81 in coordination with Vietnamese legal experts. The workshop was also an opportunity to examine the compatibility of the draft decrees with the international obligations on countering WMD proliferation and proliferation financing with which Vietnam must comply, and to learn from the practical experience of countries and organisations such as the United States, the EU and the Republic of Korea in countering proliferation and proliferation financing.

The results of the workshop provide an important basis for the Chemical Corps - Standing Office 81 to advise and make proposals to the competent authorities on the content of the decrees relating to the draft Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD./.

Nguyen Van Vuong - Centre 81