☀️ Morning digest March 23

Hanoi, (VNA) - The following is a list of selected news summaries last night by the Vietnam News Agency.

– Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh had a working session with a delegation of the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC) in Hanoi on March 22, during which he said Vietnam wants to promote its comprehensive partnership with the US in a practical, effective, equal and mutually-beneficial manner.
The delegation comprised leaders of over 50 leading US and world businesses like Netflix, Boeing, Apple, Coca-Cola, Pfizer, Abbott, Visa, Citibank, Meta, Ford, Fedex Express, among others.Read full text

– The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam on March 22 sent a congratulatory message to the Central Committee of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) on the occasion of its 68th founding anniversary (March 22, 1955 - 2023).
The message wrote that “During the past 68 years, especially after 36 years of renewal, under the wise leadership of the LPRP, the Lao people have upheld the tradition of revolutionary heroism and overcome all difficulties and challenges to gain great achievements of historical significance in all fields, improving the prestige and position of the LPRP and Laos in the international arena. These achievements are the common joy of the two parties, states and peoples".Read full text

- Secretary of the Party Central Committee and head of its Commission for Information and Education Nguyen Trong Nghia has a working session with chiefs of Vietnamese representative agencies abroad for the 2023-2026 tenure in Hanoi on March 22.
Considering the diplomats’ key role as the fastest and most efficient channel in transmitting domestic information to international friends and overseas Vietnamese communities, Nghia requested they thoroughly grasp and follow the views, policies and guidelines of the Party and State on foreign policy and external information.Read full text

– The Ministry of National Defence held an event in Hanoi on March 22 to hand over the State President’s decision on peacekeeper deployment and review some Vietnamese officers’ performance at the UN peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic, South Sudan, and the Abyei Area.
Maj. Nguyen Van Phong, former assistant at the political affairs division of Engineer Brigade 229, received the State President’s decision to work as a military observer to the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).Read full text

– The Party Central Committee’s Inspection Commission convened its 27th meeting in Hanoi from March 21-22 under the chair of its head Tran Cam Tu, who is a Politburo member and Secretary of the Party Central Committee.
The commission decided to give a warning to the Party Civil Affairs Committee of the People’s Court of Dak Lak province in the 2015-2020 tenure and its Secretary and Chief Justice of the provincial People’s Court Ngo Duc Tho as a disciplinary measure.Read full text

– Over the past 50 years, breakthrough progress has been witnessed in the Italy-Vietnam relationship, both bilaterally and multilaterally, Italian Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Maria Tripodi told Vietnam News Agency.
Tripodi said that Italy was one of the first western countries to set up diplomatic relations with Vietnam in 1973. Since then, the two sides have maintained their profound friendship and solidarity.Read full text

– A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh attended the 29th ASEAN Economic Ministers (AEM) Retreat in Central Java province of Indonesia on March 22.
At the event, Vietnam expressed support for Indonesia's priority economic cooperation initiatives during the ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2023, affirming that Vietnam will continue to work closely with other ASEAN member countries to implement the common goals of the ASEAN Economic Community.Read full text

– One of Singapore's top pure-play digital content sites - asiaone.com - on March 21 ran an article entitled “Vietnam: Can it become the Fintech Mecca of the east?”, highlighting that Vietnam’s fintech has reached new heights and its growth is fuelled by the newly introduced legal framework.
According to the article, Vietnam’s National Digital Transformation Programme by 2025 has accelerated the inclination towards fintech.Read full text/.