The Vietnamese Communist Party’s online newspaper on September 15 held an online dialogue themed, “ Thang Long-Hanoi: present and future”.

The readers’s questions focused on how to preserve Thang Long-Hanoi’s cultural heritage, the preparation for millennial celebrations, the encroachment of development on Hanoi’s relics, the treatment of environmental pollution and solutions for the capital city’s socio-economic development.

In a reply to queries on Hanoi’s unique characteristics and how to preserve them, Ass.Prof.Dr Tran Trong Hanh, former head of the Hanoi Architectural University, said that Hanoi is characterised by its terrain of trees, water and urban architecture.

In order to preserve them, solutions should be applied including grading historical cultural heritages and architectural relics, working out a master plan for urban and architectural heritage sites, mobilising capital for the preservation work and enforcing strict regulations to deal with violations as well as raising the people’s awareness of preserving Hanoi’s distinctive characteristics.

The event was a chance for readers to find out how Hanoi upholds traditional cultural values, and learn about its achievements in all areas, as well as its limitations. Readers also learnt about Hanoi’s development in the coming decades, especially effective solutions to build a civil and modern capital city./.