Announcement of the State President's Order promulgating the Law on Countering the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction
Unofficial translation from the Vietnamese original.
On the morning of 10 September 2026, in Hanoi, the Office of the President held a press conference to announce the President's Orders promulgating 15 laws adopted by the 16th National Assembly at its First Extraordinary Session, including the Law on Countering the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction. Mr Can Dinh Tai, Vice Chairman of the Office of the President, chaired the press conference.
Attending the press conference were representatives of the leadership of the Office of the National Assembly, central commissions, ministries and sectors, and news agencies and the press. On behalf of the Ministry of National Defence were Lieutenant General Le Van Huong, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army, together with delegates from agencies and units of the Ministry of National Defence and the Chemical Corps.
At the press conference, Mr Can Dinh Tai announced the President's Orders on the 15 laws just adopted by the National Assembly, covering many important areas of socio-economic life, national defence, security and state management. Among them, the Law on Countering the Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) provides an important legal basis for enhancing the effectiveness of preventing, detecting, interdicting and handling WMD proliferation risks and acts.
On behalf of the Ministry of National Defence, Lieutenant General Le Van Huong introduced the main contents of the Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD. The Law was developed and promulgated to institutionalise the Party's guidelines and policies and the State's policies on proactively safeguarding the Fatherland early and from afar, and on preventing, detecting and stopping risks that may affect national defence, security, foreign affairs and national interests. At the same time, the Law contributes to perfecting the domestic legal system and meets the requirements for fulfilling Vietnam's international commitments and obligations, including the United Nations Security Council resolutions on countering the proliferation of WMD.
The Law sets out the principles, measures, resources and responsibilities of agencies, organisations and individuals in countering the proliferation of WMD. One of its key elements is risk-based management and control, with prevention as the priority, ensuring that management and control measures are applied within the proper competence, where necessary and in proportion to the level of risk.
In addition, the Law provides a legal basis for strengthening the management of activities at risk of being exploited for WMD proliferation purposes; controlling controlled goods, materials, equipment, software, technologies and services; enhancing the effectiveness of information sharing, database development and early warning; and setting out the responsibilities of the relevant agencies, organisations, enterprises and individuals. These provisions are of great importance as trade, investment, technology transfer and supply chains continue to expand, bringing with them the risk that goods and technologies intended for civilian purposes may be diverted or misused for WMD proliferation, which calls for stronger risk management and close coordination among the competent authorities.
The announcement of the President's Order marks an important step towards putting the Law on Countering the Proliferation of WMD into practice. In the coming period, the competent authorities will continue to develop detailed regulations and implementing guidance and prepare the necessary conditions for the Law to be implemented in a coordinated and effective manner./.
