36th Session of the Intergovernmental Coordinating Committee on VRTC
01/12/2025On the afternoon of December 1, the 36th plenary session of the Intergovernmental Coordinating Committee (ICC) on the Joint Vietnam-Russia Tropical Science and Technology Research Center (VRTC) convened in Hai Phong.
Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien, Member of the Party Central Committee, Member of the Central Military Commission, Deputy Minister of National Defense, Chairman of the Vietnam Subcommittee, and Co-Chairman of the Intergovernmental Coordinating Committee on VRTC, together with Mr. Mogilevskiy Konstantin Ilich, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Russian Subcommittee, Co-Chairman of the Intergovernmental Coordinating Committee on VRTC, co-chaired the session.
Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien and Mr. Konstantin Ilyich Mogilevsky visiting a photo exhibition showcasing the activities of VRTC. Photo: Pham Hung.
At the session, delegates heard reports from the General Director of VRTC on scientific research outcomes and the center’s activities in 2025; the list of projects proposed to supplement the Scientific Research and Application Programme for the period 2025 - 2029; and the science and technology research plan for 2026. Both sides acknowledged, highly valued, and agreed with the reports presented.
Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien speaking at the session. Photo: Pham Hung.
In his remarks, Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien noted that 2025 marks the conclusion of the period 2021 - 2025 cooperation, which produced many important achievements under VRTC framework and contributed positively to the strong and friendly relations between the two countries. The two sides jointly developed and completed the Development Strategy for VRTC to 2035 and signed an amended and supplemented regulation on the Center.
These documents, he emphasized, are significant and align with both sides’ strategic orientations to deepen and expand bilateral cooperation. They also serve as an essential legal foundation for the comprehensive development of VRTC from scientific and technological research to organizational consolidation, infrastructure expansion, facility upgrades, and personnel training. The activities of the ICC have also received strong attention from both governments, contributing to the cooperation effectiveness.
Mr Konstantin Ilyich Mogilevsky speaking at the session. Photo: Pham Hung.
The three major research directions (Tropical Materials Science, Tropical Ecology, and Tropical Biomedicine) have been effectively implemented under the resolutions of the 35th ICC session and the ICC Standing Committee’s meeting on May 11th, 2025, yielding many important results, with a number of research products already applied in practice.
An overview of the working session. Photo: Pham Hung.
Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien stated that the Russian side has handed over two mobile testing vehicles to VRTC to support research and the prevention and control of dangerous tropical diseases, as well as a complete biosafety laboratory funded and transferred by the Russian Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing (Rospotrebnadzor). The handover included comprehensive training for Vietnamese personnel. These mobile labs played an important role in Vietnam’s COVID-19 response and were highly valued by the Party, State, and Ministry of National Defence.
Russia has also transferred to the Center the marine research vessel “Professor Gagarinsky”, the first such ship gifted by Russia to a partner. This, he stressed, is a vivid testament to the substantive and deepening cooperation between the two countries. Training and scientific personnel development for both sides, alongside Russian-language training for Vietnamese service members, have recorded significant improvements in both quality and quantity.
The two Co-Chairs signing the session minutes and the amended Regulation on VRTC. Photo: Pham Hung.
Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien proposed that the Russian Subcommittee Chair continue to focus on several key cooperation orientations within the VRTC framework. These include further strengthening the Center’s three traditional research directions, especially improving the performance of equipment in tropical conditions; biodiversity conservation; environmental protection; climate change response; prevention and treatment of tropical diseases; and health protection for military personnel working in harsh environments, such as military pilots and submarine crews. He also called for expanding new research fields, particularly in biotechnology.
At the same time, he stressed the need to routinely refine the legal framework and update VRTC’s development strategy in line with bilateral scientific and technological priorities, and to enhance the operational effectiveness of the two Subcommittees.
Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien and Mr Konstantin Ilyich Mogilevsky. Photo: Pham Hung.
He added that VRTC should continue developing its organizational structure and invest in joint laboratories equipped with modern facilities capable of attracting scientists from both countries for collaborative research, technology transfer, and training. Additionally, the Center should maximize the use of recently invested infrastructure, including the research vessel, mobile testing vehicles, and biosafety laboratory.
Delegates attending the session. Photo: Pham Hung.
For his part, Mr. Konstantin Ilyich Mogilevsky extended sympathies to the people of Vietnam for losses caused by recent storms and flooding, expressing hope that affected communities would soon recover. He agreed with the reports and discussions presented and emphasized that 2025 marks several important milestones for both countries, including the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War, and the 80th anniversary of Vietnam’s August Revolution and National Day. He noted that high-level delegation exchanges have been active throughout the year, reaffirming both sides’ commitment to expanding VRTC’s activities and underscoring the high level of political trust and dynamic scientific cooperation between the two nations. He highlighted key developments such as the handover of the “Professor Gagarinsky” research vessel, joint field surveys conducted by scientists from both countries, and training programs for Vietnamese researchers, all of which have contributed to the deepening of bilateral defence cooperation.
* At the conclusion of the session, the two Co-Chairs signed the session minutes and the amended Regulation on VRTC.
Source: QĐND Online
Ngoc Nguyen translated
