Macau and Vietnam endorse criminal judicial assistance draft

Macau and Vietnam have initialed a draft criminal judicial assistance agreement following two days of consultations held in Macau, marking progress toward formal cross-border legal cooperation.

A Vietnamese delegation visited Macau on April 20 and 21 at the invitation of the Macau government to negotiate the agreement, which is intended to strengthen cooperation in criminal judicial matters and facilitate exchanges between the two sides.

Both sides held detailed discussions on the provisions of the draft during the talks and reached consensus on the text, according to officials. The heads of the two delegations subsequently initialed the agreement, concluding the negotiation stage.

During the talks, both delegations conducted detailed and in-depth discussions on each provision of the draft, ultimately reaching a full consensus.

The heads of the two delegations then initialed the draft, marking a substantial outcome in the negotiation process.

Following the meeting, both sides signed a minute of talks, committing to take necessary measures to advance their respective internal procedures with the goal of formally signing the agreement as soon as possible.

While the initialing indicates that the text has been agreed upon at the negotiator level, the agreement will only enter into force after both sides complete their domestic legal requirements and formally sign the document.

The deepening of legal cooperation between Macau and Vietnam comes amid increasing economic integration and cross-border travel across Southeast Asia.

A formal criminal judicial assistance framework allows authorities to share evidence, execute search warrants, and facilitate witness testimony across jurisdictions.

The Macau government has been pursuing the negotiation and signing of mutual legal assistance agreements with foreign jurisdictions, with the assistance and authorization of the Central People’s Government.

The completion of consultations with Vietnam is expected to help strengthen joint efforts to combat cross-border criminal activities and provide better legal safeguards for economic cooperation and personnel exchanges between the two sides.