☕ Afternoon briefing on January 17 hinh anh 1
Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

- The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted a ceremony in Hanoi on January 17 to mark the 50th anniversary of the Paris Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam (Paris Peace Accords) (January 27, 1973-2023).

Prominent among the participants was former Vice President and former Foreign Minister Nguyen Thi Binh, who was head of the negotiation delegation of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam at the Paris Conference. Read full story

- Counsellor at the Cuban Embassy Joi Puente has affirmed his country’s support for Vietnam under all circumstances, particularly the past Paris Agreement negotiations. Read full story

- A postage stamp collection on the Paris Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam (Paris Peace Accords) is set to be issue on January 27, also the date on which the document was reached five decades ago.

Published by the Ministry of Information and Communications and Vietnam Post, it includes a 46x31mm stamp valued at 4,000 VND (0.17 USD). The stamp features the image of the four parties involved around a giant table as part of their roundtable discussion at the Kléber international convention centre in France. Read full story

- Vietnam is actively implementing a roadmap for an improved legal framework for better attracting green finance and green technology; and encouraging  green production and investment, said Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha.

He made the statement on January 16 while attending a dialogue on green finance and sustainable development within the framework of the 53rd World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2023 in Davos, Switzerland. Read full story

- UN Under-Secretary-General Jean-Pierre Lacroix has lauded Vietnam’s active engagement and strong performance in UN peacekeeping activities as well as the country’s commitments to implementing UN targets, espcially the ratio of female Vietnamese peacekeepers.

Lacroix, who visited Vietnam last month, made the praise while meeting Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations (UN) on January 16 to seek measures to further promote cooperation between Vietnam and the UN. Read full story

- Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations (UN), had a meeting on January 16 with UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Violence against Children Najat Maalla M’jid who updated Giang on the outcomes of her recent visit to Vietnam and discussed measures to promote bilateral cooperation in the time to come. Read full story

- Two-way trade between Vietnam and Australia enjoyed a record year-on-year growth of 26.91% to 15.7 billion USD in 2022, according to the Vietnam Trade Office in Australia.

Vietnam’s export turnover to Australia last year expanded 26.18% year-on-year to 5.55 billion USD while its imports were valued at 10.14 billion USD,, an increase of 27.31%. Read full story

- The COVID-19 pandemic is a catalyst for speeding up the digital transformation in the health sector, according to experts. Read full story

- By hosting the National Tourism Year 2023, Binh Thuan province's tourism industry is expected to create breakthroughs, contributing to further promoting tourism development in the south-central region. Read full story./.
VNA