Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to discuss the proposed centre - which was the subject of an intergovernmental agreement in 2011 - as well as potential cooperation in the field of nuclear energy. The meeting happened ahead of the bilateral summit during President Vladimir Putin's visit to the country.
Likhachev also met Vietnam's Science and Technology Minister Huynh Thanh Dat, with the two signing an interdepartmental memorandum about the plans for the centre, with Likhachev describing the agreement as "a programme document that contains a clear schedule of activities for the development of the project for the period until 2027".
Later, on Friday, Russia's Tass news agency quoted Likhachev as saying he had outlined nuclear energy options to the Vietnamese prime minister - "the entire range of our export supplies, large units, small and medium-capacity plants, and small modular reactors both in onshore and floating versions". All would be accompanied by localisation of suppliers and workforce he said, adding that "we will wait for their decision".
In the leaders' statements to the media after the summit, President Putin said that "a promising area for expanding bilateral cooperation is nuclear energy", while Vietnamese President To Lam said "we also agreed to explore opportunities for stepping up our cooperation on new energy sources and clean energy, as well as facilitate the green transition and sustainable development".
Earlier in the week President Putin visited North Korea, where the two countries agreed a comprehensive strategic partnership which, among other things, included agreeing "to develop cooperation in the area of space exploration, peaceful use of nuclear energy, AI, and IT".
