Day: August 24, 2022

The following is a list of selected news summaries last night by Vietnam News Agency.

– Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has expressed his wish that during his tenure, Canadian Ambassador to Vietnam Shawn Perry Steil will make active contributions to Vietnam – Canada comprehensive partnership, especially in the context of the fifth anniversary of their bilateral comprehensive partnership and the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

During a reception in Hanoi on August 23, PM Chinh expressed his delight at the effective and practical development of bilateral ties, with two-way trade hitting 3.57 billion USD in the first half of this year, up 25.5% annually. Vietnam’s exports to Canada surged 32% to over 3.25 billion USD in the period.Read full story

– National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue on August 23 hosted a reception for a delegation from the Youth Division of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) of Japan led by Suzuki Norikaru, member of the House of Representatives and Sato Kei, member of the House of Councillors and Acting Head of the Youth Division.

NA Chairman Hue congratulated the LDP on its resounding victory in the election of the House of Councillors in July this year, expressing his belief that under the leadership of LDP President and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, Japan will make new, greater achievements.Read full story

– Le Hoai Trung, Chairman of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations, paid a courtesy call on Vice President of the Cambodian People’s Party (CPP), Deputy Prime Minister, and Chairwoman of the CPP Central Committee’s Mass Mobilisation Commission Men Sam An on August 23 as part of his ongoing official visit to Cambodia.

During the meeting, the Vietnamese official spoke highly of Cambodia’s achievements in domestic and foreign affairs, expressing belief that under the Cambodian King’s wise reign, the leadership of the Senate, the National Assembly and the CPP, and the government’s administration, Cambodia will continue to gain greater achievements and successfully hold the NA election in 2023. Read full story

– The Party Central Committee’s Commission for External Relations has sent a message of condolences to the French Communist Party over the death of its veteran member Raymonde Dien. The commission also extended sympathy to the family of Raymonde Dien, who is a symbol of the fight against the war by the French colonialists in Vietnam. She passed away on August 19 at the age of 93. Read full story

– Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura co-chaired the 5th meeting of the Vietnam-Japan Joint Committee on Cooperation in Industry, Trade and Energy in Tokyo on August 23.

At the meeting, the two sides agreed on measures to strengthen regional and global supply chains, improve industrial competitiveness, promote cooperation in energy transformation towards carbon neutrality, and accelerate the progress of a number of important energy projects.Read full story

– Politburo member and Chairwoman of the Vietnam – Japan Friendship Parliamentarians’ Group Truong Thi Mai has affirmed that Vietnam always highly values Japan’s effective cooperation and support in national development over the past years.

Mai made the affirmation during a reception in Hanoi on August 23 for a delegation of young parliamentarians from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP)’s Youth Division led by member of the House of Representatives Suzuki Norikazu and member of the House of Councillors Sato Kei, who is also Acting Director of the division. Read full story

– A programme to promote investment and trade connectivity between Vietnamese enterprises and Singaporean partners was held by the Investment & Trade Promotion Centre of Ho Chi Minh City ((ITPC), in the southern hub on August 23.

HCM City is calling for investment in many projects in transport infrastructure, urban embellishment, environmental treatment, flood prevention, agriculture, industry, commerce and services.Read full story

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Vietnam’s imports of raw materials for processing animal feed in the first seven months of this year surged to 3.1 billion USD as domestic supply only met about one-third of local demand.

The Department of Livestock Production of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that according to the General Department of Customs, the animal feed industry had to spend nearly 2.7 billion USD to import corn and soybeans in the first seven months.

The nation also spent more than 400 million USD to import other raw materials, including oilseed meal, wheat, fish meal, bone meal, animal protein, and a mixture of trace elements.

Domestic production of corn and soybeans has met about 37% of the demand from the animal feed industry, so in past years, Vietnam had to import a huge amount of corn and soybeans, according to the Department of Livestock Production.

Corn imports reached 5.1 million tonnes in the first seven months of this year, worth 1.8 billion USD. Corn imports declined by 21.9% by volume on year but were unchanged by value, and corn imports in July reached 500,000 tonnes, worth 191.7 million USD.

Soybean imports were 1.3 million tonnes in the first seven months of this year, worth 893.6 million USD, which was the same volume from the same period a year ago but 22.8% more in value. Soybean imports in July reached 250,000 tonnes, worth 189.4 million USD.

Brazil, the United States and Canada were the three main soybean suppliers to Vietnam in the first half of this year, accounting for 99.2% of the imports.

According to the department the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the global supply chain, including the supply chain of animal feed material. The decrease in supply and higher transportation costs have made the cost of raw materials and finished products higher.

In addition, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the world’s largest and fourth largest wheat exporters, respectively, is having a great impact on global food supply and prices, directly affecting corn prices.

On the other hand, the United States has increased production of bioethanol from corn, while South American countries, such as Argentina and Brazil, have lost crops due to drought. This has caused a sharp drop in corn exports on the global market, pushing up corn prices.

Meanwhile, some countries recently suspended food exports to ensure domestic food security. That will reduce the food supply, further pushing the price of feed materials up.

It has also caused many difficulties for businesses and breeders due to higher production costs while the selling price of livestock products has tended to decrease.

According to the General Department of Customs, from 2013 to now, Vietnam’s import value of animal feed and raw materials increased every year, excluding 2017 and 2019.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said that Vietnam’s corn and soybean productivity was low, while production costs were high and profits were less attractive than other crops.

According to Nguyen Xuan Duong, vice chairman of the Vietnam Animal Feed Association, that almost all imported corn is genetically modified corn. Vietnam has also allowed the cultivation of genetically modified maize for many years, but the area where genetically modified maize is planted is still low.

According to the agricultural restructuring project implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in the past 10 years, the agriculture sector has targeted converting a part of the land area cultivating crops with low economic value to planting crops for feed material.

At the same time, the sector is focused on researching corn and soybean varieties to improve productivity. However, until now, the area growing these crops has not increased.

Tran Lam Sinh, deputy director of the Department of Agriculture and Agricultural Development of Dong Nai province, said that the domestic livestock industry needed to study the use of agricultural by-products for processing animal feed, such as beer residues, coconut flour, duckweed and rice bran.

Deputy Minister Tien said the sector was developing the region producing animal feed material to reduce dependence on imports.

De Heus Group (the Netherlands) is coordinating with the Department of Crop Production and Department of Livestock Production to build cooperatives growing cassava and maize in western provinces for the production of animal feed.

The output of animal feed in the first half of 2022 reached 10.5 million tonnes, equal to the volume in the first six months of 2021, of which 55% was for pigs, 40% for poultry, and 5% for other animals, according to the Department of Livestock Production./

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Thanks to assistance from US experts, doctors of the Binh Dan Hospital, based in Ho Chi Minh City, have succeeded in mastering urethroplasty techniques and shared experience with their colleagues from other Southeast Asian countries, heard a seminar on August 23.

Assoc. Prof. and Dr. Tran Vinh Hung, Director of the Binh Dan hospital, said his hospital has coordinated with professors from the US University of California, Irvine, in this field since 2015.

It has sent experienced doctors to the US to learn techniques from Prof. Joel Gelman, who has also visited the Binh Dan Hospital for two weeks each year to give guidance.

Since applying new techniques, the success rate of urethroplasty at the Binh Dan Hospital has reached 98%, beyond expectation as it is viewed as a type of complicated surgeries, Hung noted.

Prof. Joel Gelman from the University of California said the success rate is equivalent to the figure at big urethroplasty centres in the US.

This is a highly impressive result thanks to the hospital’s implementation of many measures such as intensive personnel training, procurement of specialised equipment, and good diagnosis before and after operations, according to the expert.

In the past five years, the Binh Dan Hospital has given successful treatment to more than 1,000 patients of urethral stricture. It is planning to set up a urethroplasty department to further improve treatment and a centre for urethroplasty training to transfer techniques to domestic and foreign doctors.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A two-day training course on Ho Chi Minh’s thought and Vietnam’s path to socialism has been held for the first time in Brussels.

It is part of this year’s Marxist School edition which attracted nearly 200 participants from Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.

The edition was resumed after two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The lecturer, Deputy Ambassador of Vietnam to Belgium Le Vinh Thang briefed the participants on the life and revolutionary career of the great leader who led the Vietnamese people to national independence and paved the way for the country to socialism.

Thang also made known an article by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong on the path toward socialism in Vietnam to the participants.

67-year-old Leen Swinnent from Belgium, one of the oldest among the participants, said she was very excited to learn about the national liberation the late leader followed in the film entitled “Ho Chi Minh – Portrait of a Man” and screened during the course.

Maxence Staquet, Rector of the Marxist School, said that the school wishes to promote the path to building socialism in Vietnam, which is initiated and led by President Ho Chi Minh, because people in Belgium and Europe have little knowledge about Vietnam.

Staquet acknowledged that he heard about the country through wars, but Vietnam is developing very fast and has recorded many achievements in the fight against poverty and ensuring social justice, adding that the Southeast Asia country will be included in the school’s teaching curriculum in the coming time.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Hundreds of books on the success of the Vietnam-Laos relations over the last six decades are on display at an exhibition opened in the central city of Da Nang on August 23.

The event, running until September 15, is co-held by the two countries’ national publishing houses to mark the Vietnam-Laos and Laos-Vietnam Solidarity and Friendship Year, the 60th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic ties (September 5, 1962 – 2022), and the 45th anniversary of the Vietnam-Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation (July 18, 1977 – 2022).

It aims to popularise the long-standing relations and comprehensive partnership between the two Parties, States and peoples throughout their struggles for independence and national construction and development, said Assoc. Prof., Dr. Pham Minh Tuan, Director and Editor-in-Chief of the Vietnam’s National Publishing House, adding that it focuses on major and historic achievements reflecting the depth of the ties during 35 years of the “Doi Moi” (renewal) period.

The event is expected to contribute to consolidating and expanding the bilateral relations today, he noted.

The books exhibited include bilingual in both Vietnamese and Laos.

Following the opening of the exhibition, the two national publishing houses held talks in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the diplomatic relations, during which the two sides also discussed issues on publishing, manuscripting, printing and personnel training, among others. They later signed a memorandum of understanding to boost cooperation.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

State President Nguyen Xuan Phuc praised the diplomatic sector for its great contributions to national construction and defence during a meeting on August 23 with representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the occasion of the 77th anniversary of the sector (August 28, 1945-2022).

The President emphasised that in the complicated and unpredictable external environment, the diplomatic sector has closely followed the Party’s guidelines and the direction of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at the National Conference on Foreign Affairs in December last year, and closely coordinated with the defence and security sectors to safeguard the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and properly handle border and territorial issues.

It has also worked well in promoting dialogues, negotiations and cooperation to solve relevant disputes on the basis of international law, he stressed.

The diplomatic sector has also implemented synchronously the three external pillars, significantly contributing to the country’s foreign affairs achievements; and consolidating the peaceful, stable and favourable environment for national and socio-economic development, he stressed.

He applauded efforts and initiatives made by the diplomatic sector to further deepen the relationship between Vietnam and foreign partners amid difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The vaccine diplomacy has contributed to enhancing the image of the country and people of Vietnam, helping Vietnam rise to the world’s leading rate of vaccination coverage, thereby creating a foundation for economic recovery, he affirmed.

Meanwhile, the economic diplomacy has helped Vietnam take advantage of new-generation free trade agreements (FTAs) in order to promote economic recovery and growth, and facilitate Vietnam’s participation in global supply chains.

Work on overseas Vietnamese affairs and citizen protection has been strongly implemented, including ensuring the safe evacuation of citizens from areas affected by conflicts, natural disasters and pandemics across the world, the President said.

Besides, he pointed out the sector’s recent shortcomings, asking to seriously handle the issues.

The sector should continue to identify the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance as a major and important policy in order to safeguard the country early, from afar, he said, asking for the close and effective coordination among the three pillars of Party, State and people diplomacy, strengthening the political trust and deepening the relationship with partners, especially neighbouring, major and traditional countries.

The sector also needs to further strengthen the protection of citizens; enhance research, forecasting and strategic consultation works, he said.

The president affirmed that the Party and State always pay attention to supporting the sector in successfully performing the noble cause of foreign affairs.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Newly-appointed UN Resident Coordinator in Vietnam Pauline Tamesis expressed her support for priorities that Vietnam promotes at the UN, during a meeting with Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, on August 23.

The UN official spoke highly of Vietnam’s contributions to the UN activities, and proposed the Southeast Asian nation continue supporting the UN Development System (UNDS) reform.

Vietnam is a country that always upholds multilateralism and multilateral cooperation, and also a model in cooperation with the UN, she said, affirming that she will continue to actively participate in the process to develop policies and plans for Vietnam’s socio-economic in the coming time.

For his part, Ambassador Giang informed her of the priorities that Vietnam will promote at the UN in the coming time, saying that the country will focus on issues related to education, disease preparedness, climate change adaptation, and energy transition.

The diplomat suggested the UN continue to support Vietnam in technology transfer and policy recommendations, and share experience and knowledge with the country to help it promote socio-economic development.

Vietnam and the UN both share the same goals, so they should strengthen cooperation in areas of mutual interest, he said.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Under the influence of Storm Ma-on, the third to enter the East Sea this year, the northern region and the north central province of Thanh Hoa will experience moderate to heavy rains and thunderstorms from the evening of August 25 to August 27.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting, at 4 am on August 24, the storm eye was at around 19.1 degrees north and 118.5 degrees east, with the strongest velocity of 89-102km per hour.

In the next 24 hours, it is forecast to move west-northwest at about 20-25km per hour. At 4am on August 25, its centre will be at about 190km to the south-southwest of Hong Kong (China) while the strongest winds will be 103-117km per hour.

At 4am on August 26, Ma-on will go northwest, traveling 25km per hour and weaken into a tropical depression.

The storm will abate into a low-pressure area in the following 24 hours, the centre said.

Source: Vietnam News Agency