Terrorists may use Vietnam as transition hub, says minister in Hanoi

Vietnam's Ministry of Public Security on Wednesday raised concerns on terrorists potentially using the country's soil to launch attacks in third countries, a report said.

Dinh Viet Dung, deputy head of the Department of Homeland Security of Vietnam, made the remarks while addressing the international anti-terrorism cooperation conference.

Dung asserted that terrorists and terror organizations may choose Vietnam either as a refuge or a transition hub for a third location to evade authorities, reported 'Vn Express International'.

"There are tens of thousands of Vietnamese living in areas with active terrorist organizations like the Middle East, North Africa, or South Africa. There's also the possibility of these people being recruited by terrorist organizations to return to Vietnam and perform terrorist acts," the report quoted Dung as saying.

Bevan Moroney, a representative of the Australian Federal Police, said that anti-terrorism collaboration between countries is the only way to fight terrorism effectively.

Countries should actively share their intelligence resources, while not infringing on national interests, in the effort to fight terrorism, he said.

Earlier on February 20, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres speaking at the Munich Security Conference expressed concern over the spread of terrorism.

"The risks of terrorism spillover out of Afghanistan, as well as the alarming spread of terrorism in some African countries, show how adept terrorists are at exploiting power vacuums and subverting fragile states," he said.

( With inputs from ANI )