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Vietnam denies Germany's Trinh Xuan Thanh kidnap claim Vietnam 'kidnap victim' Trinh Xuan Thanh appears on TV
(about 5 hours later)
Vietnam's government has insisted that a former oil executive reported to be seeking asylum in Berlin has "turned himself in" - a day after Germany accused Hanoi of kidnapping him. A former oil executive who Germany accuses Vietnam of kidnapping after he applied for asylum in Berlin has appeared on Vietnamese state TV.
Germany said the abduction of Trinh Xuan Thanh was illegal. Trinh Xuan Thanh said he had turned himself in to the Vietnamese authorities after returning there.
Mr Thanh, 51, is accused of causing about $150m in losses at state oil company PetroVietnam. The German foreign ministry said he had been abducted in an "unprecedented" breach of German and international law.
A Vietnamese foreign ministry spokeswoman said she felt "great pity" about the German government statement. Mr Thanh is accused of causing $150m (£114,000) in losses at state oil firm PetroVietnam.
"I wasn't thinking maturely and decided to hide, and during that time I realised I need to return to face the truth and... admit my faults and apologise," Mr Thanh, 51, said during his appearance on Vietnam Television.
In what was termed a signed confession dated 31 July, the state broadcaster quoted him as saying: "Because of fear I decided to hide in Germany, where I lived a precarious and anxious life.
"I returned to Vietnam and presented myself at the investigative authority."
Germany has ordered a Vietnamese intelligence officer to leave Germany, and demanded that Mr Thanh should be allowed to return to Germany.
'He looks very bad'
Mr Thanh's lawyer, Petra Schlagenhauf, condemned the Vietnamese authorities.
"This is a forced 'confession'... he was kidnapped. We know it, the German police know it, the German government knows it," she told BBC Vietnamese in an email.
"I fear for the health of my client. He looks very bad."
It is unclear if Mr Thanh has legal representation in Vietnam. Trials on camera are common in Vietnam.
Dissent in the one-party state is not tolerated, but despite that, activists have publicly criticised the government amid the kidnapping allegations.
A Vietnamese foreign ministry spokeswoman said earlier that she felt "great pity" about the German government's stance.
"Vietnam very much respects and wants to develop the strategic partnership relation between Vietnam and Germany," she added."Vietnam very much respects and wants to develop the strategic partnership relation between Vietnam and Germany," she added.
Germany has ordered a Vietnamese intelligence officer to leave Germany, and demanded that Mr Thanh should be allowed to return.
The foreign ministry in Berlin also said it was considering further action to an "unprecedented... breach of German and international law".
It is unclear if Mr Thanh has legal representation. Trials on camera are common in Vietnam.
Dissent in the one-party state is not tolerated, but despite that activists have publicly criticised the government amid the kidnapping allegations.