Vietnamese Minister of Public Security To Lam addresses the 18th trilateral and bilateral ministerial meeting on drug prevention and control between Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam, which opens in Hanoi on September 11, 2019. (Photo: VNA)

Addressing the meeting, Public Security Minister To Lam hailed the effective cooperation in the trilateral and bilateral mechanisms between the three countries since its establishment in 1998. He said: “We should strengthen coordination and promote internal resources while optimizing external support to prevent drugs, especially cross-border drug trafficking. More efforts should be focused on improving public awareness raising campaigns and strengthening capacity of anti-drug forces. The trilateral coordination will be an important factor to ensure successful prevention and control of drugs in each country.”

Delegates from the three countries agreed to focus all efforts on realizing the goal of protecting the ASEAN Community against illicit drugs in 2016-2025 without tolerating drugs and accepting the legalization of drug use. They vowed to persistently pursue the post-2015 drug-free ASEAN vision and consider this as a common goal of the three nations.