Politics

☀️ Morning digest on January 12

The following is a list of selected news summaries reported last weekend by the Vietnam News Agency.

☀️ Morning digest on January 12


Hanoi (VNA) – The following is a list of selected news summaries reported last weekend by the Vietnam News Agency.

- Vietnam attaches great importance to its relations with the US and wishes to continue strengthening their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for the benefit of the two countries' people and for peace, cooperation and development in the region and the world, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said on January 10 while receiving outgoing US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper.

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Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) receives outgoing US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc Knapper in Hanoi on January 10. (Photo: VNA)

At the meeting, the Government leader highly appreciated the close coordination from Knapper and the US Embassy, which contributed to major milestones in bilateral relations over the past four years, particularly the upgrade of ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, laying a solid foundation for a new phase of development. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired an online conference on January 10 evening with Vietnamese ambassadors and heads of overseas representative missions to review economic diplomacy in 2025 and outline tasks for 2026, stressing that economic diplomacy must be conducted with sincerity, harmonious interests, and shared risks.

The PM assessed that economic diplomacy in 2025 recorded important, transformative results, helping shift the situation and create new momentum for growth. From 2026 onward, Vietnam must strive for double-digit economic growth, which requires all sectors, levels, and localities to make greater efforts and generate stronger breakthroughs. Read full story

- For Vietnam, one of the world’s top rice exporters, targeting mid-sized markets with stable demand, high quality standards and near-total reliance on imports such as Israel is proving to be a smart strategic play.

The Vietnam - Israel Free Trade Agreement (VIFTA), which took effect in late 2024, is poised to provide a fresh boost to agricultural exports, with rice at the forefront. Read full story

- Military Region 5, in coordination with the Gia Lai People’s Committee, held a ceremony in the central province’s Tuy Phuoc Dong commune on January 10 to hand over 57 newly built houses, officially completing the construction of 100 new homes for local residents affected by recent storms and floods under the Prime Minister-initiated Quang Trung Campaign.

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At a handover of newly built houses to flood-affected residents in Gia Lai province. (Photo: VNA)

From December 1, 2025, units under the Ministry of National Defence, Military Region 5, and the Gia Lai Military Command deployed 590 teams comprising 8,189 officers, soldiers, and militia members. They helped build 610 new houses and repair 314 others for flood-hit residents in Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Khanh Hoa, Quang Ngai and Da Nang. Read full story

- The nationwide Yoshine Music Festival 2026 is a large-scale music and arts education event, developed with a professional educational, academic and artistic orientation to discover, nurture and honour young musical talents in Vietnam.

Speaking at a press briefing held by the organisers in Hanoi on January 10, President of the Vietnam Musicians' Association (VMA) Nguyen Duc Trinh, said the festival is a practical initiative contributing to the development of the country’s musical life, improving the quality of arts education and spreading the values of classical music to the wider community. Read full story

- The total value of humanitarian activities carried out nationwide by the Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) last year reached nearly 5.2 trillion VND (197.84 million USD), assisting more than 8.7 million people, according to Vice President and General Secretary of the VRCS Central Committee Nguyen Hai Anh.

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The Viet Nam Red Cross Society provides emergency relief to residents affected by Storm Matmo in Lao Cai province. (Photo: VNA)

Major movements, such as the Humanitarian Tet (Vietnam’s Lunar New Year Festival), the Humanitarian Month, and the campaign “each organisation, each individual linked to a humanitarian address,” continued to affirm the VRCS’s role as a connecter of social resources. The Tet campaign alone supported more than 2.6 million people, with a total value exceeding 1.34 trillion VND. Read full story

- Vietnam exported more than 8.06 million tonnes of rice in 2025, earning over 4.1 billion USD, according to the latest statistics from the Department of Customs.

The figures represented a year-on-year decline of 10.8% in volume and 27.6% in value, clearly reflecting the impact of the global downturn in rice prices over the past year./. Read full story

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