HANOI, Sept. 16 (Xinhuanet) -- Vietnam strongly protests a recent decision by the United States to enlist it as one of "the countries of particular concern"on religious freedom, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Thursday.

    "The decision of the State Department of the United States (about the enlistment in its annual report on religious freedom) byno means benefits the common efforts of the governments and peoples of Vietnam and the US to build a relationship of stability and lasting cooperation in the interests of the two peoples,"the ministry spokesman said in the statement.

    There is no such thing as"religious prisoners"or "forced renunciations of faith" in Vietnam in which all religious organizations are given favorable conditions to function normally in accordance with the laws.

    Vietnam's laws do not allow any violation of the rights to freedom of beliefs and religions and rights to freedom of non-beliefs and non-religions, said the statement.

    "Vietnam requests the United States to take right decisions inconformity with the principles of the bilateral relations on the basis of mutual understanding and respect so as not to undermine the broad interests of the two countries,"it added.

    The US State Department released Wednesday its sixth Annual Report on International Religious Freedom, which examines the "status of religious freedom around the world." The report cites Eritrea, Saudi Arabia and Vietnam as new "countries of particular concern." Enditem