VFF President visits HCM City Archdiocese and Protestants

The President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF), Huynh Dam, visited the Ho Chi Minh City Archdiocese and the Vietnam General Confederation of Evangelical Churches (Southern Region) on the morning of December 24 to celebrate Christmas.

Mr Dam met with and conveyed holiday wishes from the Party and State to the Archbishop of HCM City, Cardinal Pham Minh Man,

The VFF leader affirmed the importance of the Cardinal's role and reiterated that the Catholic community is an inseparable part of the nation’s unity bloc.

He expressed his hope that Cardinal Man will join other Catholic dignitaries and believers and lend his prestige to patriotic emulation movements.

Cardinal Man sent his Christmas and New Year wishes to all the Vietnamese people.

The same day, VFF President Dam also visited the Vietnam General Confederation of Evangelical Churches (Southern Region).

Mr Dam sent Christmas greetings to the Confederation's dignitaries, pastors and Protestant followers, saying he welcomed their contributions to the country’s construction and development.

Pastor Thai Phuoc Truong thanked the Party and State, as well as the VFF, for their attention to the religious society in recent times, especially on the centenary anniversary of the introduction of Protestantism into Vietnam last June.

Party leader wants to boost strategic plans

Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong yesterday urged the Party Central Committee's Commission for External Relations to prioritise basic research and strategic forecast.

The request was made at Trong's working session with the commission, which served as an advisory body for the Party's Central Committee in external relations.

Trong said good research would help the commission establish new goals in diplomacy as the nation integrated into an increasingly complex world.

He also asked the commission to expand the Party's external relations with a number of countries throughout the globe.

To date, the Party has established relations with 200 parties from 114 countries, including 94 communist parties, workers' parties and 46 ruling parties.

According to the commission head Hoang Binh Quan, the commission had kept abreast of regional and international situations in consultation with the Party to take proper measures in leadership to maintain ties with foreign nations.

The commission is looking to establish relations with ruling parties around the world.

The successful organisation of official visits from the Party leader and Secretariat Committee to other countries had helped deepen co-operative ties with Viet Nam and states around the world.
 
Reception for Japanese diplomat

President Truong Tan Sang held a reception for the Special Ambassador for Japan-Viet Nam Relationships, Sugi Ryotaro, while he was visiting Viet Nam yesterday.

Sugi said he was happy to return to Viet Nam and learn more about its investment environment.

His visit was connected to a study of a major urban complex in Ha Noi's outskirts that will attract funding from the Japanese business community. Sugi said he hoped the project would meet part of the housing demand of the city.

Sang told the esteemed guest he appreciated contributions from the ambassador to bilateral ties, including economic and trade co-operation.

He also said the Vietnamese Government would create favourable conditions for Japanese enterprises to invest in Viet Nam.

Gov't urged to back research, innovation

More Government support is needed to improve research and innovation, experts have warned.

Speaking at a workshop in HCM City yesterday on building invention market, Nguyen Thanh Binh, head of the Intellectual Property Department's HCM City office, said: "The Government should set up a technology development fund for small and medium-sized enterprises as well as institutes and universities."

"People involved in technology transfer should be encouraged to promote research and innovation," he said, adding that institutes, universities, and other research organisations should focus on the real needs of businesses.

According to Pham Hong Quat, deputy head of the Ministry of Science and Technology's Market and Enterprises Development Department, inventions have played an important part in human development.

He said:"It is time for Viet Nam to adopt the model of co-operation between research institutes and universities, innovative businesses, multinational corporations, and government agencies to boost innovation."

In 2010 there were 3,200 patent filings in Viet Nam, but only 10 per cent of them by Vietnamese, mainly researchers at universities and other institutes.

However, most of them remain on paper and have not seen practical application though the Government has spent a lot of money on their research.

In November the Ministry of Science and Technology announced a VND1 trillion (US$50 million) fund for the purpose.

Quat said: "We should strengthen education to promote innovation as well as enact more laws to protect invention-related ideas."

The ministry has organised the annual Technology Fair (Techmart) for the last 17 years.

More than 7,000 contracts worth over VND70 trillion ($3.5 billion) have been signed at these fairs, and the value has been growing at 34 per cent in the last few years.

Vietnam full of praise for China’s valuable support

Vietnam always treasures China’s valuable support and assistance and wants the country to more closely coordinate with Vietnam in carrying out the agreements reached by leaders from both sides under the “16-word” motto and the “four goods” spirit.

Fostering Vietnam-China strategic partnership

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said this at a reception for the visiting Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping in Hanoi on December 22.

Mr Dung spoke highly of the Chinese State leader’s visit which shows the Communist Party of China (CPC)’s desire to constantly solidify the cooperative relations and friendship between Vietnam and China. He also praised the results of cooperation in various fields over the past year which serves as an important foundation for bringing the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic partnership to a new height in the future.

For his part, Mr Xi Jinping said he agreed on measures to promote bilateral ties put fourth by PM Dung, while emphasizing that the Vietnam-China friendship is a valuable asset that should be preserved and developed to benefit both nations.

The two leaders agreed that Vietnam and China need to continue promoting political trust and mutual understanding by maintaining the exchange of visits by senior leaders and representatives from various ministries, sectors and localities, and improving the role and efficiency of cooperation mechanisms, especially of the Steering Committee for Vietnam-China Bilateral Cooperation.

Mr Dung asked the two sides to approve the lists in the five-year development plan for economic cooperation, increase the efficiency of bilateral economic and trade cooperation, and expand areas of potential, with the aim of doubling two-way trade turnover by 2015.

Mr Xi Jinping called on both sides to boost cooperation in key areas such as transport, energy, agriculture and fishery, towards the goal of US$60 billion in two-way trade by 2015.

The two nations need to ensure the balance of trade, build key cooperation projects within the framework of “two corridors, one economic belt” and support Chinese businesses investing in this area, Xi Jinping added.

Regarding the land border issue, PM Dung said the two countries need to work together on the three signed documents, accelerate the signing of a cooperation agreement on exploring natural resources for tourism development on Ban Gioc waterfall and an agreement on free water traffic in the Bac Luan River mouth area, and increase cooperation in the management and effective use of water resources in border areas.

Concerning the sea issue, Mr Dung reiterated Vietnam’s stance on the East Sea issue and asked the two sides to respect and pay attention to their aspirations and legitimate interests based on the agreements reached by the two countries’ leaders, especially the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea, for the sake of peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region and in the world.

PM Dung asked the government delegations in negotiation to discuss ways of carrying out the agreements on the basic principles of resolving the sea issues.

Party chief sends condolence wreath to DPRK

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong sent a condolence wreath to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) over the death of Kim Jong-il, DPRK’s top leader on December 25.

Kim Jong-il, General Secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, Chairman of the National Defence Commission, Supreme Commander of the Korean People’s Army, died of heart failure on December 17 at the age of 69.

State Vice President visits Catholic dignitaries and parishioners

State Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan on December 23 visited Catholic dignitaries and parishioners at the Phat Diem diocese in Kim Son district, Ninh Binh province.

Ms Doan presented flowers to Bishop Giuse Nguyen Nang and gifts to each of 10 exemplary model Catholic families in the district.

The Vice President wished priests, clergymen and Catholic followers a peaceful, merry Christmas and happy New Year.

She affirmed that the Catholic community has made a significant contribution to the achievements of Ninh Binh province in recent times.

In Kim Son district, nearly 5,500 parishioners have registered to donate their corneas once they pass away and so far, 80 of them have followed through with donating their corneas, bringing light to 168 blind patients.

Given this, Vice President Doan praised these humanitarian activities as having brought light to the lives of many unfortunate people and applying the teachings of the 16th Pope that each good Catholic is also a good citizen.

Former Vietnamese volunteer soldiers honoured

Thirteen representatives of former volunteer Vietnamese army and expert forces supporting Laos during the war were honoured in Hanoi on December 22.

The representatives received Issara Orders, the first Order of Laos, and Orders of Victory, presented by Lao Ambassador to Vietnam Xomphon Sychaleun.

The honours were in recognition of their contribution to Laos’ cause of national liberation, construction and development.

"Their feat of arms and contributions play an important part in strengthening the friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the Party, Government and people of the two countries," said the Ambassador.