Vietnam Flag for Vietnam

Country Spotlight

Vietnam is not known to have ever developed biological, chemical, or nuclear weapons. Since the Vietnam War, it has been vocal in supporting the complete elimination of chemical weapons and signed the Chemical Weapons Convention in 1993. Vietnam possesses a limited missile arsenal but does not indigenously produce them.

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Region   East Asia and the Pacific

2013 High enriched uranium reserves transferred to Russia

11 million Gallons of Agent Orange herbicide used by U.S. forces during Vietnam War

2014 Signed a 123 bilateral nuclear cooperation agreement with the U.S. which expires in 2044

Nuclear

  • Is a member of Treaty of Bangkok, which established a nuclear weapon-free zone in Southeast Asia
  • Adopted a nuclear energy law in 2008 as a legal framework for nuclear activities
  • In December 2024, the Vietnamese National Assembly approved the restart of work on the Ninh Thuận nuclear power plant to be completed by 2030, after initially shelving the project in 2016
  • Signed a partnership agreement with Russia aimed at helping to improve Vietnam’s nuclear energy development, and is currently continuing to pursue other partnerships with countries such as Japan and France

Biological

  • Has never possessed a biological weapons capability
  • Party to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
  • Submitted a working paper on "ASEAN Member States’ Perspective on International Cooperation and Assistance Under the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (BWC)" to the BWC Second Session of the Working Group on Strengthening the Convention in 2023.

Missile

  • Possesses Scud ballistic missiles acquired from the USSR and North Korea and has sought upgrades from international partners
  • Unveiled domestically-produced VCM-01 anti-ship cruise missile based on Russian design in 2020
  • Possesses surface-to-air missile systems
  • Is currently in talks with India to purchase BrahMos antiship missiles for $700 million

Chemical

  • Has never possessed an offensive chemical weapons capability and supports their universal elimination
  • Was subjected to herbicide attacks from the U.S. between 1962 and 1971, though these are not considered chemical weapons by the OPCW

Treaties and Regimes Memberships

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NPT

The NPT is a treaty aimed at limiting the spread of nuclear weapons through the three pillars of non-proliferation, disarmament, and peaceful use of nuclear energy.

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Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT)

The Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty bans all nuclear explosion tests on Earth. It needs eight key countries to ratify before entry into force.

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Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)

The Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) bans the use, possession, testing, and transfer of nuclear weapons under international law.

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Bangkok Treaty

The SEANWFZ Treaty (Bangkok Treaty) preserves Southeast Asia as a Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone and free from weapons of mass destruction.

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