August 15, 2025
HANOI – The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Phạm Thu Hằng on Thursday responded to media questions regarding Japanese media reports on the recent arrest of Vietnamese nationals for allged smuggling of large amount of cannabis worth as much as US$35 million.
According to the diplomat, immediately after receiving information on the incident, and in line with the instructions of the foreign ministry, Việt Nam’s representative agencies in Japan promptly contacted the relevant Japanese authorities to obtain and verify information, and implemented appropriate citizen protection measures in accordance with Vietnamese regulations as well as the host country’s laws.
“Việt Nam resolutely handles, in strict accordance with the law, all acts of manufacturing, trafficking, possessing, or transporting narcotics, and stands ready to cooperate both bilaterally and multilaterally in combating crime in general and drug-related crime in particular,” the spokesperson stressed.
Earlier, NHK, Nikkei and several other Japanese media outlets reported that Japan had seized around one tonne of dried cannabis packed in 200 cartons on a cargo ship that had departed from Đà Nẵng Port in central Việt Nam and arrived at Tokyo Port in June.
According to the Japanese authorities, the quantity of cannabis seized in this case is more than twice the total 452 kilogrammes of dried cannabis confiscated by police, drug control authorities and other relevant agencies across Japan in 2024, and marks the largest single drug seizure ever recorded in the country.
Japan’s Ministry of Health’s Narcotics Control Department has arrested three Vietnamese nationals on suspicion of violating drug control laws, allegedly conspiring to smuggle cannabis for profit. Among them is a 51-year-old man residing in Ibaraki Prefecture.
The Narcotics Control Department is also investigating possible links to an international drug smuggling ring. According to investigators, authorities traced the cannabis shipment from Tokyo Port and seized it in the northern Kanto region.