Vietnam Civil Nuclear Agreement Enters Into Force

A new U.S.-Vietnam civil nuclear agreement fully entered into force last week after an exchange of diplomatic notes Oct. 3 that finalized the deal. Notably, the agreement has raised questions from some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle because it lacks legally binding restrictions on enrichment and reprocessing, known as the ‘gold standard.’ The completion of the deal came after the Obama Administration sent the deal to Congress in May, where it sat for 90 days of continuous legislative session as a requirement to enter into force. Last week Secretary of State John Kerry met with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh and discussed the 123 agreement, among other issues.