HANOI, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- "Vietnam strongly condemns the assassination of Russian Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov," according to Le Hai Binh, spokesperson of Vietnamese foreign ministry on Wednesday.
Karlov was killed in a gunman attack at an art exhibition on Monday in the Turkish capital of Ankara.
While answering reporters' queries on Vietnam's reaction to the killing, Binh said "We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the Russian Government and people as well as the family of Ambassador Andrey Karlov. We believe that the criminal would be punished properly," reported local Nhan Dan (People) newspaper on Wednesday.
Earlier on Tuesday, Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang sent a message of condolences to Russian President Vladimir Putin over the killing of Ambassador Andrey Karlov.
On the occasion, Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh also cabled a message of condolences to Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
In a related move, Binh also addressed reporters' inquires about Vietnam's position on the truck crash in Germany's Berlin and shootings in Switzerland.
"Vietnam strongly condemns attacks on innocent civilians and sympathizes with immense grief and losses suffered by families of the victims in the truck crash in Berlin and shootings in Switzerland," said Binh.
The Vietnamese official told media that none Vietnamese citizen has been recorded so far in the truck attack in Berlin on Monday night.
At least 12 were killed and 48 others were injured in the attack in a Berlin Christmas market.
