ASEAN Law Enforcement High-level Conference on Cooperation in Combatting Criminal Fugitives opens in Ha Noi

Representatives of the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security were Minister of Public Security General Luong Tam Quang and Deputy Minister of Public Security Senior Lieutenant General Le Van Tuyen, who chaired the conference.

Heads of ASEAN delegations attending the conference included Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Sokha; Brunei Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office and Chairman of the National Security Committee Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Sufian bin Haji Sabtu; Timor-Leste Minister of Interior Francisco da Costa Guterres; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Philippines to Viet Nam Francisco Noel R. Fernandez; Lao Deputy Minister of Public Security and Director General of the General Department of Security Major General An Ounanongnout; Myanmar Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Min Thu; Singapore Deputy Secretary for Policy at the Ministry of Home Affairs Ngiam Shih Chun; Assistant Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police Lieutenant General Ittipol Ittisarnronnachai; Malaysian Deputy Secretary-General of the Ministry of Home Affairs Dato’ Haji Abdul Halim bin Haji Abdul Rahman; and Director of the International Relations Division of the Indonesian National Police Brigadier General Dodied Prasetyo Aji.

Representing the ASEAN Secretariat was Assistant Director and Head of Political-Security Cooperation Division 1 Retno Astrini.

The conference was also attended by representatives of ASEAN embassies in Ha Noi and leaders of relevant agencies from Viet Nam and other ASEAN member states.

Delivering the opening remarks, Minister Luong Tam Quang stated that, amid increasing globalization and international integration, transnational crime generally and criminal fugitives particularly had become increasingly complex and posed major challenges to law enforcement agencies in the region and worldwide.

Since the beginning of 2026, influenced by global and regional crime trends and domestic socio-economic developments, transnational crime involving ASEAN countries had continued to rise, particularly drug trafficking, human trafficking and cyber-enabled fraud. These crimes were committed using increasingly sophisticated methods and tactics, creating significant difficulties for prevention and law enforcement efforts.

At the same time, the number of criminal fugitives and offenders exploiting the territories of ASEAN member states to commit unlawful acts had continued to increase, seriously undermining respect for the law and weakening criminal justice systems.

This situation presented numerous difficulties and challenges and required stronger international cooperation among regional and global law enforcement agencies in preventing and combating transnational crime.

Minister Luong Tam Quang affirmed that ASEAN is Viet Nam’s most directly relevant and one of its most important multilateral cooperation mechanisms. During more than 30 years of its ASEAN membership, Viet Nam has proposed numerous initiatives and made important contributions to promoting a united, strong and resilient ASEAN that maintains its central role in preserving regional peace, stability and security.

According to the Minister, to improve the effectiveness of regional cooperation in combatting criminal fugitives during the new stage of development, Viet Nam took the initiative in proposing the “ASEAN Leaders’ Declaration on Enhancing Cooperation in Apprehending Criminal Fugitives”, adopted at the 47th ASEAN Summit held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on October 26, 2025.

Its adoption provided an important foundation for strengthening coordination between Viet Nam and other ASEAN countries in verifying, apprehending and handling criminal fugitives, in the spirit of “Developing ASEAN into a model for preventing and combating transnational crime” and “Towards a crime-free ASEAN.”

To ensure the Declaration’s effective, substantive and comprehensive implementation at the regional level, the Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security hosted the ASEAN Law Enforcement High-level Conference on Cooperation in Combatting Criminal Fugitives under the theme “Strengthening Regional Cooperation towards a Law-Abiding ASEAN Free of Criminal Fugitives.”

Minister Luong Tam Quang described the conference as an important forum for senior leaders of ASEAN law enforcement agencies to strengthen connectivity and improve the effectiveness of regional cooperation in combatting criminal fugitives.

The conference would also contribute to the effective implementation of the ASEAN Plan of Action in Combating Transnational Crime for the 2026–2035 period.

Minister Luong Tam Quang expressed confidence that the conference’s success would establish a new and effective cooperation mechanism for ASEAN law enforcement agencies in combatting criminal fugitives and contribute to implementing the ASEAN Community Vision 2045 in the spirit of “a resilient, innovative, dynamic and people-centered ASEAN.”