Hanoi’s authorities are expanding home quarantine for F0 and F1 cases to 30 districts and townships, as prescribed by the health sector.

It is expected that the number of new cases will continue to rise rapidly, particularly as travel traditionally increases in the last months of the year.

There have been 1,751 new cases found in the city between November 25 to December 1, an average of 291 cases a day.

Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs elected as President of Vietnam-US Society

Ambassador Pham Quang Vinh, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, was elected as President of the Vietnam-US Society (VUS) for the 2021-2026 tenure at the fourth congress of the association on December 3.

In his remarks, Vinh, who is also former Vietnamese Ambassador to the US, expressed his hope for new breakthroughs in people-to-people diplomacy between the two countries, contributing to elevating the bilateral relationship to a new height.

HCM City ranks sixth in InterNations Expat City Ranking 2021

HCM City has recently ranked sixth in a survey of more than 12,000 people about the best cities for expatriates to live and work in, conducted by InterNations - the largest global community for expats.

The Malaysian capital city, Kuala Lumpur, is the top city for expatriates in 2021, surpassing 56 other cities around the world. In second place is Spain's Malaga and Dubai comes in at the third place.

Results are based on respondents' satisfaction across five categories, including quality of life, ease of settling in, personal finance, housing and factors related to working overseas.

VN Aviation Authority wants suspension of flights from 10 African countries

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has proposed the suspension of flights, including repatriation flights, from 10 African countries to prevent the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV-2 from entering Vietnam.

The 10 countries include: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Angola and Zambia. Passengers who travelled through these countries within 30 days before entering Vietnam should be denied entry into Vietnam.

The agency recommended that the Ministry of Transport ask the Ministry of Health to issue specific guidance on quarantine control over passengers arriving from some countries where Omicron has been found such as the Republic of Korea and Japan.

COVID-19-hit people in three provinces provided 4,880 tonnes of rice 

Deputy Prime Minister Le Minh Khai has signed a decision on the free-of-charge provision of over 4,880 tonnes of rice from the national reserve to Hoa Binh, Ha Tinh and Soc Trang provinces to support needy people who have been affected by restriction measures to fight COVID-19.

Hoa Binh province will receive 54.78 tonnes, while central Ha Tinh province will get 229.47 tonnes, and the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang more than 4,596 tonnes.

Top legislator of Laos to visit Vietnam

Chairman of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane will pay an official visit to Vietnam from December 6-8 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Vuong Dinh Hue, the National Assembly Committee for External Relations announced on December 4.

Blood donation drive launched to celebrate Vietnam-Thailand diplomatic ties

A blood donation event was held in HCMC on December 4 on the occasion of the 45th anniversary of the establishment of Thailand-Vietnam diplomatic relations (1976-2021). The event attracted the participation of 290 people and approximately 418 units of blood were collected.

On this occasion, the Thai Consulate-General donated 45 million VND (nearly 2,000 USD) to support the municipal HCM Communist Youth Union committee’s project in helping children orphaned by the pandemic.

Since May 2019, the Thai Consulate-General in HCM City and partners have organised four blood donation drives with 647 blood units to help Vietnamese patients.

Vietnam to try its best at AFF Suzuki Cup: press conference

The Vietnamese national football team will work hard through each match to get the best results at the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020, Coach Park Hang-seo said at a press conference ahead of the opening of the AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 on December 4.

In December 2006, Vietnamese football hit its nadir when the national team slumped to 172nd in the world rankings. Ranked 99th now, they are the only ASEAN team in the top 100 and the third round of the World Cup qualifiers.

For this Suzuki Cup, the Vietnamese team is drawn into Group B where they will play Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia and Cambodia at the Bishan Stadium.

Artefacts on Ha Nam province on display

The exhibition is open until December 15. Contributed by the museum and six private collectors, the exhibits tell the tale of the history and development of Ha Nam province.

The exhibition, the first of its kind, aims to strengthen a sense of responsibility to promote the value of national cultural heritage.

Vietnam chairs UNSC meeting on addressing challenges of children without parental care in conflict settings

Ambassador Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN, chaired an UN Security Council meeting on December 3 on addressing challenges of children without parental care in conflict settings.

The Arria-Formular meeting was held following Vietnam's initiative and co-hosted by Kenya, Niger, Norway, Saint Vincent & Grenadines, Russia, the US and Malta.

HCMC officials meet with foreign cultural officers, reporters

Leaders of Ho Chi Minh City on December 3 held a dialogue with foreign cultural and press officers and reporters residing in Vietnam.

The event was part of the Press Tour Ho Chi Minh City 2021 co-organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the municipal People’s Committee from December 1-5.

It was one of the activities to revive the city’s socio-economic development and tourism in particular, including popularising HCM City as a safe destination to international markets as well as drawing investment in tourism, culture, education and economy.

Number of traffic accidents reduces in VN

Vietnam has recorded remarkable improvements of traffic safety and order thanks to the involvement of the whole political system and efforts of people.

In 2020, Vietnam saw a sharp fall in terms of the number of traffic accidents, and traffic accident-related deaths and injuries in the past decade, and for the first time, the number of traffic accident-related deaths fell below 7,000 people.

In the January – November period of this year, 10,137 traffic accidents occurred nationwide, killing 5,111 and injuring 7,059 others, down 24.72 percent, 17.76 percent and 29.47 percent year-on-year, respectively.

Forum held to promote space research

The 27th Asia-Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF-27) was held virtually from November 30 to December 3 with the theme “Expand space innovation through diverse partnership.”

The APRSAF-27 forum attracted the participation of about 600 delegates from more than 40 countries including Japan, India, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, China, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia.  The APRSAF-28 forum will be held in Hanoi, Vietnam next year.

The APRSAF-27 was an opportunity for space agencies in the Asia-Pacific region to share experiences and seek cooperation opportunities.

Meeting discusses rare disease action plan in the region

Health experts reviewed the regional progress of the implementation of the APEC Rare Disease Action Plan over the past few years, at a meeting in Hanoi on December 2.

The “Advisory Council and Experts Meeting on Rare Disease Management in Vietnam” was jointly organised by the Medical Services Administration (MSA) and the National Pediatrics Hospital.

At the event, experts also discussed the definition and list of rare diseases, as well as made presentations on rare disease diagnosis, treatment guidelines and management.

Vietnamese FM holds meeting with Secretary of China’s Zhejiang Party Committee

Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son on December 3 had an online meeting with Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhejiang province Yuan Jiajun as part of the former’s ongoing official visit to China.

Son suggested consolidating and expanding friendly exchanges between Vietnamese localities and Zhejiang, and intensifying experience sharing in the areas that Zhejiang has strength like sustainable development, digital economy, science-technology and infrastructure construction.

Expressing his support for Son’s proposals, Yuan affirmed that Zhejiang attaches importance to enhancing and expanding cooperation with Vietnamese localities, thus significantly contributing to the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Paintings drawn by disadvantaged children on display

Fifty paintings drawn by disadvantaged children were put on display at an exhibition called “Gratitude” held at the United Nations Office in Vietnam on December 3.

The event is a continuation of the contest “For a Triumphant Vietnam” which was held by Mr. Sun programme, Hope Foundation and UNICEF in Vietnam.

Through the stories, messages, pictures and thoughts ingrained in each work, viewers are taken on an emotional journey raising awareness and an understanding of COVID-19 through the children’s eyes.

Vietnam coordinates rescue of 18 foreign sailors from sinking boat

NARIMOTO MARU, a Belize-flagged cargo ship, was en route from Malaysia to Taiwan (China) with 18 sailors and 9,310 tonnes of clay on board.

The vessel began to tilt so heavily that it faced the risk of sinking when it was crossing the waters of Binh Thuan, about 262 km east-northeast of Vung Tau Cape, on December 1, forcing all the sailors to leave the ship amid high waves of up to 4 – 5m.

Thanks to the concerted efforts of relevant agencies, a nearby Denmark-flagged vessel called MATHILDE MAERSK came to the site to rescue the sailors on the same day’s night and bring them ashore safely two days later.

The crew members were then taken to The Coast Hotel in Vung Tau City, the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau to go under quarantine in accordance with COVID-19 preventive rules.

Vietnam co-chairs 15th meeting of Experts' Working Group on Peacekeeping Operations

The 15th Meeting of the Experts' Working Group on Peacekeeping Operations (EWG PKO) Cycle 4 for the 2021-2023 period, within the framework of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus), took place on December 3 via videoconference under the co-chair of Colonel Mac Duc Trong, head of Vietnam EWG PKO and Matsuzawa Tomoko , head of Japan EWG PKO.

The co-chair and active engagement of Vietnam in the meeting reflected the positive and proactive role of the country as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and the co-chair of the EWG PKO Cycle 4 for the 2021-2023 period, affirming the role, prestige and position as well as contributions of Vietnam in multilateral cooperation mechanisms on UN peacekeeping operations.

Compiled by Thanh Van

VIETNAM NEWS HEADLINES DECEMBER 3

Vietnamese-Russian ministries sign cooperation agreement