This is not a Vietnamese problem; this is a global public health problem where Vietnam is at the front line,

But it's not going to be contained in Vietnam if we get a pandemic of avian influenza. Within a very short time span it will spread all over the world.

We are actually disease-free in Vietnam for the moment. We're probably not virus-free, but what the mass vaccination has done is reduce the virus load in the environment we have less virus circulating.

Dengue is not outside the tropical zone, it is not a threat for international public health, ... For Europeans or people from North America, the threat for dengue is if you visit (Asia), while with avian influenza if it mutates it will immediately be a threat for every household in the world.

It is worrisome if health care workers are not alert and taking specimens if they suspect an influenza-type illness.

While we have made impressive efforts at achieving results to tackle this epidemic ... we seem to be leaving some people behind. If there were some tendency that we leave the children behind in these global efforts, that would not only be unfortunate, it would be unacceptable.