Weekly press digest – June 23-29

NA’s seventh session wraps up with success

The 13th National Assembly wrapped up its seventh session in Ha Noi on June 24.

The session was convened when the regional and international situation faced complicated and unexpected developments, with China’s illegal placement of the Haiyang Shiyou 981 oil rig within Vietnam’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone (EEZ) threatening national sovereignty and independence, peace, stability, maritime and aviation security, safety and freedom in the East Sea, NA Chairman Nguyen Sinh Hung said.

After one month of sitting, the NA discussed and reviewed the implementation of the socio-economic development plan for 2013 and the first five months of 2014, while spending time thoroughly discussing and adopting 11 laws, two resolutions and making comments on 16 draft laws and one draft resolution.

Poverty rate to be reduced to below 5% by 2015

The National Assembly has adopted a resolution on sustainable poverty reduction until 2020, targeting the reduction of the ratio of poor households to below 5% and that of poor districts to less than 30% by 2015.

The resolution stressed the need to increase commodity production in combination with developing the market for commodities in disadvantaged and ethnic minority-inhabited areas, while linking poverty reduction policies with socio-economic development, national defence and security maintenance.

La Lay int’l border gate inaugurated

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Pham Binh Minh, along with his Lao counterpart Thoonglun Sisoulith, cut the ribbon to open the La Lay international border gate on June 25.

The border gate, which links Viet Nam’s Quang Tri province with Laos’ Salavan province, is the eighth along the 2,000km shared border, contributing to boosting socio-economic development and maintaining national security and defence, while responding to demand of exchanges, commercial cooperation and import and export activities between the two countries’ provinces along the shared border. 

It also connects the East-West Economic Corridor and neighbouring countries, Cambodia and Thailand, helping attract local and international investors to the region and boost the development of the Corridor and connectivity within ASEAN  in order to form an ASEAN community by 2015.

PM approves seaport plan adjustments

The Prime Minister has approved adjustments to a seaport system development plan by 2020, with a total cost estimated at VND 80 trillion-100 trillion (US$3.75-4.68 billion).  

The new plan will ensure the throughput of all imports and exports and exchange between different regions in the country by sea to meet socio-economic development requirements.

It will concentrate on building international gateway ports in Hai Phong, Ba Ria-Vung Tau and the central key economic regions in order to receive vessels of up to 100,000 tonnes or larger.

 Wider application of methadone treatment agreed

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has ordered local authorities nationwide to ensure sufficient medical staff, equipment and money to provide more methadone treatment for drug addicts.

The country is striving to have 30,850 patients receiving this therapy by the year’s end and increase the figure to over 81,000 by 2015.

Methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) programme was initially piloted in Hai Phong and Ho Chi Minh City in April 2008, and then spread to 32 cities and provinces nationwide, with more than 17,500 patients being treated at 92 clinics.

Petrol prices increased by VND 340 per litre

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) on the evening of June 23 allowed petrol distributors to increase fuel prices by a maximum of VND 340 per litre, the highest level so far this year. This is the fourth price increase on gasoline this year, reaching the highest level since the beginning of 2014.

Retailers including the Viet Nam National Petroleum Group (Petrolimex) increased their gasoline prices (in Region 1 – urban areas) by VND 330 to VND 25,230 (RON 92) and VND 25,730 (RON 95) per litre. For Region 2 – outlying areas and areas far from ports, the prices for RON 92 and RON 95 rose to VND 25,730 and VND 26,240 per litre respectively.

Trang An landscape complex receives World Heritage status

The Trang An landscape complex in northern Ninh Binh province has been recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has announced. The status was granted at a UNESCO Committee meeting in the Qatari capital of Doha on June 23.

UNESCO described Trang An, a mixed natural and cultural property, as a spectacular landscape of limestone karst peaks permeated with valleys, some of which are submerged, and surrounded by steep, almost vertical cliffs.

Trang An was recognised by the Vietnamese Government as a special national site in May 2012, and its dossier was submitted to UNESCO in September of that year.

VN economy grows by 5.18% in H1

Viet Nam achieved GDP growth of 5.25% in the second quarter of this year, bringing the six-month rate to 5.18%, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

Viet Nam earned US$ 70.9 billion from exports in the six-month period, representing a year-on-year increase of 14.9%.

Viet Nam welcomed nearly 4.3 million foreign arrivals in the first six months, a year-on-year increase of 21%. The number of Chinese visitors to Viet Nam nosedived 21.2% in June compared to May due to the standoff in the East Sea.

China continues to escalate tensions in East Sea

While China’s Haiyang Shiyou 981 oil rig and escort ships and aircrafts have recently maintained illegal operations within Viet Nam’s exclusive economic zone and continental shelf, China also undertook numerous acts making the situation in the East Sea more complicated and stressful.

Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Le Hai Binh made this statement at a regular press conference in Hanoi on June 26.

The spokesperson said that the Maritime Safety Administration of China (MSA) released an announcement on June 18 that the Nan Hai-09 drilling platform moved from 17°38' north latitude and 110°12.3' east longitude to 17°14.1' north latitude and 109°31' east longitude between June 18-20. At 1pm on June 21, Vietnam’s relevant agencies detected that the Nan Hai-09 drilling platform had moved to the announced location.

“Vietnamese Culture Days” underway in Russia

The “Vietnamese Culture Days in Russia” event is taking place in Moscow in a bid to help Russians gain deeper understanding of Vietnam’s rich culture.

The opening night on June 25 featured a special performance of Vietnamese traditional music and dance, Vovinam martial arts, and an Ao Dai (Vietnamese traditional dress) show. Russian songs were also performed by Vietnamese singers.

Present at the event, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh expressed hopes that the Vietnamese Culture Days will help further bolster traditional friendship and cooperation between the two countries as well as their strategic partnership.

First Vietnamese brand tablet launched

Microsoft, the Viet Son Company, and Intel Corporation officially launched the first Vietnamese brand tablet in Vietnam market, namely ROSA on June 26.

ROSA tablet is preinstalled Windows 8.1 operating system, the latest version of Microsoft Office accompanied with Wifi and 3G version. It includes 8-inch and 10 inch-model models.

The 8 inch model costs VND3,990,000  (US$188 ) meanwhile the 10 inch one costs over VND 6.4 million(US$ 305 )./.

(Source: VGP/VNA/VOV/Nhandan Online)