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The purpose of the meeting was to see how best such difficulties could be resolved, he said.
"There is an ongoing dialogue with the Vietnamese authorities on the VM repatriation programme. This meeting was part of that process.
"The talks took place in a cordial atmosphere; there was a frank exchange of views and we had the opportunity to hear at first hand the thoughts of our Vietnamese counterparts.
"We also advised them of our concerns. We are particularly pleased that we agreed on arrangements for the early repatriation of new arrivals," Mr Bresnihan said.
End
Co-operation to stamp out rogue shipping operators urged
The Secretary for Economic Services, Mr Gordon Siu, called for co-operation to ensure all flag states work hand in hand with Port State Control in policing the rogue operators in the shipping industry.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the third meeting of the Port State Control in the Asia-Pacific region hosted by the Marine Department this (Monday) morning, Mr Siu said the scourge of substandard ships remained to this day as some operators still found it more convenient to cut corners at the cost of safety.
In this respect. Port State Control played a crucial role in keeping to ensure the safety standards of ships, he said.
Under Port State Control, a port state carries out inspection on foreign ships calling at its port to make sure that they comply with the safety and pollution prevention requirements of the International Maritime Organisation conventions and thus discourage the operation of substandard ships.