Afternoon briefing on October 13

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

- Party General Secretary To Lam highlighted three major requirements for the Government Party Organisation while addressing the opening of the first Congress of the Government Party Organisation in Hanoi on October 13.

The top leader said that the responsibility of the Government Party Organisation is immense, as it plays a key role in implementing these strategies. In line with the Party’s leadership, the Government Party Organisation must focus all efforts on the country’s interests, respond to the legitimate aspirations of the people, and mobilise all domestic and international resources for development, he stressed. Read full story

- The first Congress of the Government Party Organisation for the 2025-2030 tenure officially opened at the National Convention Centre in Hanoi on October 13 morning, with the participation of 453 delegates representing over 209,000 Party members from 2,211 subordinate Party organisations.

In his opening speech, Politburo member, Secretary of the Government Party Committee, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh underlined that the congress is a particularly important political event for the Government Party Organisation, marking a historic milestone in the journey to build a transparent, creative, action-oriented, and people-centered government that meets the political requirements of the "revolution of organisational restructuring," ensuring comprehensive, direct, and absolute leadership by the Party over the Government Party Committee and the Government, the highest state administrative agency. Read full story

- The Vietnam Department of Peacekeeping Operations under the Ministry of National Defence, in coordination with the New Zealand Embassy in Vietnam, held an exchange in Hanoi on October 13 to share experience between the two countries on psychological support for military personnel participating in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions.

Speaking at the event, Colonel Nguyen Nhu Canh, Deputy Director of the department, said the programme focused on members of Engineering Unit Rotation 3 and Level-2 Field Hospital Rotation 6, who recently completed a one-year mission in Abyei and South Sudan. Post-deployment psychological support, he noted, plays a vital role in helping the personnel reintegrate smoothly with their families, comrades, and communities after serving in the challenging conditions of Africa. Read full story

- The Ministry of Finance has decided to allocate supplies from the national reserves to support the northern provinces of Cao Bang and Lang Son in addressing the aftermath of recent flooding.

For Cao Bang, the ministry authorised the Department of State Reserves to deliver 600 tonnes of rice, 20 lightweight rescue tents measuring 24.5 sqm each, 400 life jackets, 300 lifebuoys, 50 inflatable rescue rafts, four generators, three sets of drilling and cutting tools, six water pumps for firefighting, and six rope-launching rescue kits to the provincial People’s Committee to promptly assist affected residents to stabilise their lives.

For Lang Son, 2,000 tonnes of rice from the national reserves will be allocated to provide timely relief for people impacted by the floods. Read full story

- Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son has demanded that those displayed at the Autumn Fair 2025, scheduled to open in Hanoi on October 26 and run through November 4, must be outstanding products meeting rigorous quality controls.

Set to be Vietnam’s biggest-ever fair, the Autumn Fair 2025 will pack about 3,000 booths into the 100,000-sq.m Vietnam Exposition Centre in suburban Dong Anh commune, the nation’s largest and most modern venue, drawing all 34 cities and provinces, ministries, agencies, major state-owned corporations, private firms, domestic and foreign companies. Read full story

- A fully booked aircraft carrying 281 passengers operated by Belavia Belarusian Airlines safely landed at Phu Quoc International Airport on October 12, marking the carrier’s inaugural direct flight connecting Minsk (Belarus) with Phu Quoc island (Vietnam).

According to the schedule, the charter flights on the Minsk – Phu Quoc route will operate once every 11 days. A representative of AeroBel Service, the tour operator that chartered the flights, said that all tickets have been sold out until March 2026, with the number of Belarusian visitors to Vietnam during the 2025 – 2026 tourist season expected to reach nearly 10,000. Read full story./.

VNA