October 28- November 3: Party leader, President receives Lao counterpart

Party leader, President receives Lao counterpart

Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong hosted a reception on October 28 for his Lao counterpart Bounnhang Vorachith and a high-ranking delegation from the Lao Party and State, who are visiting Vietnam to attend the ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the Traditional Day of Vietnamese Volunteer Soldiers and Experts in Laos.

He highlighted the close fraternity between the two nations who have stood shoulder-to-shoulder in their struggles for national liberation and construction.

At the event, both leaders agreed that the celebration will offer a good occasion for the two countries to look back on their special solidarity, and to show gratitude to the contributions of the Vietnamese voluntary soldiers and experts to the revolutionary causes of the two Parties, as well as to the independence and freedom of the two peoples.

PM Phuc attends 35th ASEAN Summit and related summits

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (fifth from right) and other ASEAN leaders pose for a photo at the opening ceremony of the 35th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok on November 3 morning (Photo: VNA)

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc joined leaders of other ASEAN countries and the bloc’s partners at the opening ceremony of the 35th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok on the morning of November 3.

The PM’s participation in the summits aims to promote the association’s central role, expand and deepen relations with ASEAN’s partners, and create a conducive environment for the sustainable development of each country and the whole region.

Following the opening ceremony, the ASEAN leaders attended meetings with the bloc’s partners, namely the 22nd ASEAN-China Summit, the 16th ASEAN-India Summit, and the 10th ASEAN-UN Summit.

Vietcombank becomes first Vietnamese bank to open rep office in US

The Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) inaugurated its representative office in the US on November 1.

Located in Manhattan, New York, the office is the first of its kind opened by a Vietnamese commercial bank in the US. The office received a licence from the New York State Department of Financial Services on June 17 this year. Earlier on October 26, 2018, Vietcombank received approval for its application from the US Federal Reserve System.

Tropical Storm Matmo hits central Vietnam

Floods on the rivers from Quang Ngai to Phu Yen are on the quick rise due to the influence of Storm Matmo.

The storm made landfall on Vietnam’s south central coast in the early hours of October 31, bringing strong winds and heavy rains before weakening to a low-pressure area.

No human losses have been reported but Matmo has caused damage at a boat shelter area at Quy Nhon Port in Binh Dinh province, it devastated houses, among other buildings, knocked down trees and cut off electricity where it swept through.

According to the national disaster management agency, about 900,000 households across Quang Ngai, Binh Dinh and Phu Yen were left without power in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Matmo. Power has since been restored to 150,000 households.

Essex lorry deaths a great humanitarian tragedy: Foreign Ministry spokesperson

After the UK police’s announcement on late November 1 that the victims in the Essex lorry case are thought to be Vietnamese, spokesperson of the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry Le Thi Thu Hang said on early November 2 that this is a great humanitarian tragedy.

She expressed that immediately after the case came to light on October 23, the Foreign Ministry had instructed the Consular Department and the Vietnam Embassy in the UK to coordinate with relevant agencies and localities of Vietnam and the UK, provide information related to the case from Vietnam to assist with the identification of victims, open hotlines to receive information and get citizen protection measures ready in the case there are Vietnamese among the victims. The embassy had also transferred the results of UK police’s identification process to Vietnamese agencies for cross-check.

Hanoi joins UNESCO's Network of Creative Cities

A performance at the weekend pedestrian zone around Hoan Kiem lake in Hanoi

Hanoi has joined 65 other cities as a new member of the UNESCO's Network of Creative Cities, revealed the city’s Department of Culture and Sports on October 31.

With the new 66 newly-designated cities, the UNESCO Creative Cities Network now counts a total of 246 cities from all regions of the world, which base their development strategies on seven creative themes, including music, arts and folk crafts, design, cinema, literature, digital arts, and gastronomy.

In winning UNESCO’s recognition, Hanoi will be provided with more opportunities to cooperate with other creative cities in the network while advertising itself as a more attractive destination for visitors.

Vietnam among world’s top 10 for growth in international arrivals

International visitors to Vietnam have increased from 8 million in 2015 to 15.5 million in 2018 with a growth rate of 25% per year, ranking among the 10 countries posting the highest growth in international tourist arrivals.

October 2019 was the first month that the number of international visitors to Vietnam reached over 1.6 million, bringing the total number of international visitors to Vietnam in the first ten months of 2019 to 14.5 million people.

Hanoi FC claim maiden National Cup title after comeback win

Hanoi FC players celebrate their first-ever National Cup trophy.

Reigning V.League champions Hanoi FC completed their double this season after fighting back to beat Quang Nam FC 2-1 on October 31 to clinch the 2019 Vietnamese National Cup trophy.

The supreme triumph in the National Cup arena wrapped up an amazing season for Hanoi FC, who dominated in domestic tournaments (V.League and National Cup) and advanced to the AFC Cup inter-zone play-off final.