China and Vietnam have agreed to combat the rising incidence of drug trafficking in their respective borders by strengthening police and judicial cooperation, China's Ministry of Public Security said on Thursday.

The agreement was entered into by the two nations during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Vietnam this week on the first leg of his Asian tour, which includes stops in Singapore and Taiwan.

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The Chinese Ministry said tons of drugs are being smuggled into China through the border of Guangxi autonomous region and Vietnam, making it the second largest channel of drug trafficking in the mainland.

Reports said drug traffickers use the border with Myanmar as the main route in conducting their drug activities.

In the agreement, the two nations vowed to fight drug production of opium and methamphetamine and trafficking the drugs at the two major international centers that China borders: the Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent.

The Ministry of Security said the Golden Triangle, which includes Myanmar, Laos, and Thailand, is the world's major producer of narcotics, and China's Yunan province and Guangxi are the hardest-hit areas of drug trafficking.

China and Vietnam have already initiated measures to curb drug trafficking in the borders as they launched a major campaign from September 16 to November 15 to arrest and prosecute drug smugglers and producers and take down drug rings.

Already, police officers from both nations have arrested 2,054 suspects and confiscated 2,400 kilos of drugs since the campaign began. China has also uncovered 2,500 drug smuggling cases. Of this number, 1,800 suspects have been arrested, including eight Vietnamese.

They also seized 2,299 kg of drugs, including 63 kg of heroin and 88.4 kg of methamphetamine, and confiscated 1.27 million yuan ($200,000) in drug money.

Chinese police have set up a command center in Guangxi to exchange information with their Vietnamese counterparts, as well as collect evidence in effort to curb the notorious drug trade in the area.

Law enforcement from both countries have also stepped up security check in key roads, airports, and ports as added measures to combat drug smuggling.

TagsVietnam, Ministry of Public Security, methamphetamine, opium, heroin, Drug Trafficking in Asia