The Vietnam Agency for Radiation and Nuclear Safety (VARANS) in conjunction with the European Union (EU) held a conference in Hanoi on April 4 to introduce the outcomes of a project strengthening the capacity and efficiency of the VARANS and its technical support provision.

Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh

VN3.01/13 is the next project of VN3.01/09 – the first cooperation project of its kind between the EU and Vietnam on providing technical assistance for improving the legal framework for nuclear safety and strengthening the capabilities of the VARANS and its Technical Support Organisation (TSO).

Through three years of implementing the project, set activities have been conducted as scheduled. Its initial outcomes have contributed to completing the compilation of many important legal documents on nuclear safety, nuclear inspection, and incident response.

It also helps build an integrated management system in accordance with international standards and human resources development plans suitable with the State management function of the VARANS.

Minister of Science and Technology Chu Ngoc Anh said the cooperative relations between Vietnam and the EU have been developing strongly in recent years, especially after the two sides signed the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) on June 27, 2012.

The signing marked an important milestone in the bilateral cooperation and created a legal foundation to bring the Vietnam-EU relations to a new period with deeper-and-wider collaboration, he said.

Following the success of the VN3.01/09 project, the Vietnamese Prime Minister approved the VN3.01/13. 

The VARANS and the EU coordinated to adjust some contents of the project suitable with the new situation, focusing on safety research reactor, preparation for and response to incidents, radioactive waste management policies and strategies.

Ambassador Bruno Angelet, head of the EU delegation to Vietnam, highlighted the sound relations between the two sides in various fields, not only in nuclear, but also in trade, energy, investment and defence security.-VNA