Regarding the recent allegations of the use of chemical weapons in Syria, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesman Luong Thanh Nghi said Vietnam strongly condemns the chemical attacks on civilians. The spokesman made the statement in Hanoi on August 29 when he was answering reporters’ queries regarding Vietnam’s response to information on the use of chemical weapons in Syria. Nghi said, “We emphasize the need to comply with the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which outlaws the use of such weapons.”

He also stressed that Vietnam calls on concerned parties to contain themselves and address the case in an objective and careful way by peaceful means in respect for international law and the United Nations Charter. In related developments, Obama administration officials told lawmakers on Thursday that they have "no doubt" chemical weapons were used in Syria and that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government had used them, U.S. Representative Eliot Engel, told Reuters. The senior administration officials cited evidence including "intercepted communications from high-level Syrian officials" on a conference call with lawmakers, said Engel, the top Democrat on the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, Reuters reported. They also cited evidence including seeing personnel being moved around Damascus that indicated "it was ready for something big like a chemical attack," he said. The officials who conducted the briefing included Secretary of State John Kerry, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, National Security Adviser Susan Rice, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper and Admiral James Winnefeld, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according to Reuters.