☕ Afternoon briefing on January 2

The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

☕ Afternoon briefing on January 2

Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

– State President Luong Cuong presented decisions granting the title of Ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to five officials and diplomats at a ceremony held in Hanoi on January 2.

The title recipients were Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Thanh Binh, Vietnamese Ambassador to India Nguyen Thanh Hai, Deputy Director and Deputy Chief of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Office Ngo Toan Thang, and Nguyen Vu Tung, a senior lecturer at the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam. Read full story

– Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on January 2 chaired the 7th meeting of the Government's steering committee for the review of the implementation of Resolution No. 18/NQ-TW, adopted by the 12th Party Central Committee in 2017, which aims to continue reform and re-organise the political system to ensure that it is streamlined and operates more efficiently and effectively.

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PM Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the meeting. (Photo: VNA)

The steering committee reported that all 30 ministries, ministry-level and governmental agencies have submitted their organisational restructuring plans and summary reports on the resolution implementation as requested. Read full story

– One year after Vietnam and the US upgraded their ties to the comprehensive strategic partnership, the two countries have enjoyed thriving cooperation across multiple domains, US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E.Knapper told the Vietnam News Agency.

“The partnership upgrade itself is a strong testament to how far we have come over nearly three decades. Whether it's our economic relationship, trade and investment, defense, health, climate, energy, education, and security, we had made so much progress, and so the upgrade seemed like a natural reflection of that progress and of our achievements. The elevation was also meant to send a very powerful message to the two peoples about how much confidence we have in the future and in each other,” according to the ambassador. Read full story

– Vessel CSB 8005 under the Command of Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) Region 3 has successfully completed a working mission with the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) in Kochi city, Kerala state of India.

Col. Nguyen Minh Khanh, Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff of the Command of Coast Guard Region 3, and head of the Vietnamese delegation, said the December 3-31 trip reflected desire to foster deeper cooperation, trust and mutual understanding in maritime law enforcement between the VCG and ICG, for the benefit of the two countries’ people and for peace and stability in global and regional waters. Read full story

– Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung, who is also deputy head of the National Steering Committee for Semiconductor Industry Development, emphasised that the committee will continue to settle difficulties and bottlenecks to turn the semiconductor industry into a major driver of Vietnam’s growth in the new era.

The ministry, as the standing agency for the steering committee, has held discussions with top global tech firms such as Qualcomm, Google, Meta, LAM Research, Qorvo, and AlChip, and is actively working on plans to shift supply chains to Vietnam, establish research centres, and expand production and business operations in the country, the minister said. Read full story

– Vietnam Airlines is using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for all flights departing from Europe, starting January 1, 2025, becoming the first Vietnamese carrier to do so.

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Vietnam Airlines is the first Vietnamese carrier to use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for all flights departing from Europe. (Photo: VNA)

These flights use SAF at a rate of at least 2% which will gradually increase to 6%, 20%, and 70% in 2030, 2035, and 2050, respectively. Read full story

– Vietnam’s imports of computers, electronics and components in 2024 surpassed the 100 billion USD mark for the first time in history and were the highest level since 2013, according to statistics from the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

As of December 15, 2024, the country spent 361 billion USD importing goods from around the world, a 15.6% increase compared to the same period last year. Of the 53 main import categories, 47 have a turnover of over 1 billion USD. The category of computers, electronics and components led the turnover at 102 billion USD, a 21.4% annual increase. Read full story

– Vietnam’s agro-forestry-aquatic product exports see ample room for growth in 2025 after achieving a record high revenue of 62.5 billion USD in 2024, insiders have forecast.

This year, Vietnam eyes an agricultural export value of 64-65 billion USD. Read full story

– As many as 92,080 business establishments had registered to use e-invoices generated via cash registers by the end of 2024, rising 2.3-fold from the previous year, heard a recent conference reviewing finance and state budget affairs.

Accordingly, the number of e-invoices from cash registers surpassed 1.3 billion in 2024, a 13-fold increase compared to 2023, when 105 million e-invoices were reported. Revenue recorded through this system reached 686 trillion VND (over 26.9 billion USD) last year, 7.4 times higher than the 93 trillion VND in 2023. Read full story./.

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At the residence of the family of late Chairman of the Council of Ministers Pham Hung. (Photo: VNA)

PM offers incense in tribute to late government leaders

Prime Minister (PM) Pham Minh Chinh and Permanent Deputy PM Nguyen Hoa Binh offered incense in tribute to late Chairman of the Council of Ministers Pham Hung and late PM Vo Van Kiet at the residences of their families in Ho Chi Minh City on January 4 evening.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh pins the token of the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces onto the traditional flag of the Ho Chi Minh City armed forces. (Photo: VNA)

HCM City's armed forces honoured with Hero of People's Armed Forces title for third time

Politburo member and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on January 4 presented the title of Hero of the People's Armed Forces to Ho Chi Minh City’s armed forces recognising their outstanding and extraordinary contributions, particularly in combating the COVID-19 pandemic, building the Vietnam People's Army (VPA), strengthening national defence, and the Fatherland construction protection cause.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man (centre) attends a ceremony announcing the Prime Minister’s decision on recognising Van Yen district of Yen Bai province to meet criteria of a new-style rural area in 2024. (Photo: VNA)

Van Yen district recognised as new-style rural area

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man on January 4 attended a ceremony announcing the Prime Minister’s decision on recognising Van Yen district of Yen Bai province to meet criteria of a new-style rural area in 2024 and receiving a second-class Labour Order.

PM Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the meeting. (Photo: VNA)

PM urges choosing optimal solutions to political system re-organisation

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on January 2 chaired the 7th meeting of the Government's steering committee for the review of the implementation of Resolution No. 18/NQ-TW adopted by the 12th Party Central Committee in 2017 which aims to continue reform and re-organise the political system to ensure that it is streamlined and operates more efficiently and effectively.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (Photo: VNA)

Innovation, acceleration lead Vietnam into new era

On the occasion of the New Year 2025, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has written an article stressing the importance of innovation, creativity, acceleration, and breakthroughs to lead Vietnam steadily into a new era – the era of the nation's rise for strong development, civilisation and prosperity.

Party General Secretary To Lam (fourth, left) and delegates at the event (Photo: VNA)

Party internal affairs sector's performance praised

Party General Secretary To Lam attended a conference held by the Party Central Committee's Commission for Internal Affairs in Hanoi on December 31 to review the Party's internal work and the performance of steering committees for the prevention and control of corruption, wastefulness and negative phenomena in centrally-run cities and provinces.

National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man (centre, front) and veterans and revolution contributors from Regiment 271 of the Tri Thien Military Region at their meeting in Hanoi on December 31 (Photo: VNA)

NA Chairman meets veterans of Regiment 271

National Assembly (NA) Chairman Tran Thanh Man met with a delegation of veterans and revolution contributors from Regiment 271 of the Tri Thien Military Region on December 31.