Creating a superior mechanism for an international financial center and ensuring national energy security

Continuing the 10th Session, on the afternoon of December 4, the National Assembly discussed in groups two important contents: the Draft Law on Specialized Courts at the International Financial Center and the draft Resolution of the National Assembly on mechanisms and policies for national energy development in the 2026-2030 period.

"Rules of the game" must be consistent with international standards.

Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court Nguyen Van Quang, National Assembly delegate of Da Nang city, speaks. Photo: Doan Tan/VNA

Regarding the draft Law on Specialized Courts at the International Financial Center, the issue that attracted the greatest attention from National Assembly deputies was the regulation on the mechanism for appointing foreign judges. Speaking at the discussion session, Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Court Nguyen Van Quang emphasized that this is a key factor to ensure the prestige of the judicial institution in the international financial environment.

Explaining the urgency of this regulation, Chief Justice Nguyen Van Quang pointed out five core reasons. Firstly, regarding language, the current team of court officials does not have enough English proficiency in economics and international to ensure the trial according to the requirements of No. 222/2025/QH15 of the National Assembly on the International Financial Center in Vietnam.

Second, in terms of legal qualifications, Vietnamese judges are mainly trained in the civil law system, while the Courts at the International Financial Center operate under the common law system. In addition, there is a lack of experience in adjudicating international financial cases and the requirement for independent and objective prestige to create confidence for investors. Practice from Dubai shows that, in the first 10 years, the Dubai International Financial Center had to hire courts and judges entirely from Singapore, Hong Kong (China) or the UK to resolve disputes.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man affirmed that once an international financial center is established, the "rules of the game" must be in line with international standards. Mechanisms, including specialized courts, must be superior to attract capital; if not strengthened, investors will not come.

Delegate Do Duc Hong Ha (Hanoi) also assessed that the draft law demonstrates ambitious legal thinking; allowing the application of English language and foreign laws shows that Vietnam truly accepts international standards.

However, many delegates also contributed ideas to perfect specific regulations. Delegate Nguyen Huu Chinh (Hanoi) said that it is very difficult to have foreign judges meet all four conditions as in the draft, and proposed to amend it in a more flexible direction. Meanwhile, delegate Le Thanh Phong (Ho Chi Minh City) suggested replacing the appointment system with a contract-based selection mechanism to easily attract high-quality personnel. Delegate Nguyen Manh Cuong (Quang Tri) suggested reviewing terminology to ensure consistency and transparency in litigation.

Untie the energy knot

Giving opinions on the draft Resolution on the mechanism and policy for national energy development in the 2026 - 2030 period, delegates highly agreed on the necessity of issuing a Resolution to realize Resolution No. 70-NQ/TW dated August 20, 2025 of the Politburo on ensuring national energy security until 2030, with a vision to 2045; to meet growth needs.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man pointed out the reality that "any investor coming to our country asks if there is enough electricity for production". The National Assembly Chairman noted that this Resolution looks towards the future with synchronous solutions, while emphasizing the responsibility of the Government and the Ministry of Industry and Trade in preventing negativity and policy profiteering when applying special mechanisms.

From a practical perspective, many delegates expressed concerns about synchronization and legal risks. Delegate Vu Ngoc Long (Dong Nai) warned of the risk of legal conflicts when the National Assembly issues new laws in the future, and proposed prioritizing the development of waste-to-energy as a stable source of electricity, both to treat the environment and reduce pressure on energy storage.

The issue of mobilizing social resources was also discussed by many delegates. Delegate Huynh Thanh Chung (Dong Nai) said that the core bottleneck lies in the transmission and distribution stages, so there needs to be a mechanism to allow the private sector to participate in investing in electricity infrastructure. Delegate Nguyen Tuan Anh (Dong Nai) warned about the risk of lack of transparency, requesting a careful review of capital conditions, prices and criteria for determining "unexpected and urgent" cases to avoid abuse of power and market barriers.

Contributing specific solutions, delegate Ha Sy Dong (Quang Tri) proposed to include LNG electricity in the group of strategic sources and boldly decentralize power to localities to locally adjust power source and grid planning up to 220kV level.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/tao-co-che-vuot-troi-cho-trung-tam-tai-chinh-quoc-te-va-dam-bao-an-ninh-nang-luong-quoc-gia-20251204184835874.htm