VIETNAMESE Ambassador to Manila Lai Thai Binh said Vietnam and the Philippines “work closely” together against transnational crime, including human trafficking and online scam operation.
The envoy made the remark at the sidelines of the 81st anniversary of the Independence Day of Vietnam and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Hanoi and Manila.
The Manila Times asked the envoy regarding collaborations between Vietnam and the Philippines to prevent Vietnamese and Filipinos from getting victimized by human traffickers and operators of scam hub centers in southeast Asia.
“We have been enjoying a lot of cooperation in this area,” Binh said Wednesday evening.
He said that as members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), Vietnam and the Philippines “fully understand the importance of collaboration in dealing with the transnational crime.”
“We have certain MOU (memorandum of understanding) between the two countries and the regional countries in dealing with such issues,” Binh said. “And I must say that the law enforcement agencies from the two countries have been very active in working with each other, in dealing with the transnational crime and in supporting each other with capacity building.”
“I think that with the new enhanced partnership and the collaboration between the two countries we continue to grow with deeper trust and better collaboration,” the envoy said.
Binh added, “So, I think that the future will be very positive for both sides and not only for the two countries also for the region.”
The Asean Parliamentarians for Human Rights in October 2025 called on Asean leaders to “prioritize dismantling” transnational scam and cybercrime centers across Southeast Asia.
The Asean legislators said the operations of these scam hubs are not merely financial crimes. “They are systematic human rights violations that require coordinated regional action,” they said.
