Vietnam re-elected to the WIPO Co-ordination Committee

Vietnamese delegation led by ambassador Vu Dung, Head of the Vietnamese delegation to the United Nations (UN), attended the 49th series of Meetings of the Assemblies of the Member States of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland from September 26 to October 5, 2011.

Addressing the meetings, the Vietnamese delegation emphasized that intellectual property is an important tool for renovation and creativity and it provides a fresh impetus for national development. Vietnam is committed to closely co-ordinating with WIPO and other member states to cope with arising challenges.

Delegates also said that in the coming years, the intellectual property community will have to cope with three major challenges including meeting the growing demand for intellectual property, posting cultural contents in the Internet and assisting the developing countries to use intellectual property in an effective way.

At the meetings, Vietnam was re-elected to the WIPO Co-ordination Committee for the 2012-2013 tenure. On the sidelines of the meetings, the Vietnamese delegation held talks with representatives from the Japan Patent Office and the French National Intellectual Property Institute to promote cooperation in the field of intellectual property between Vietnam, France and Japan.

The Vietnamese delegation also signed a cooperative agreement with the US Patent and Trademark Office. Tran Viet Hung, assistant to the Minister of Science and Technology said that this was the first cooperative agreement reached between Vietnam and the US in the field of intellectual property.

VN, Philippines to boost military ties

Lieutenant General Do Ba Ty, Chief of the General Staff of the Viet Nam People's Army received General Eduardo San Lorenzo Oban, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, in Ha Noi yesterday, Sep 28.

Ty spoke highly of the visit by Oban and his entourage, saying he believed that the visit would contribute to strengthening the friendship between the armies and peoples of the two countries.

He took the occasion to express his thanks to the Philippines for the recent release of 122 Vietnamese fishermen and for the Philippine navy's support in rescuing 12 other fishermen who were in distress at sea on September 1.

Ty also expressed his sympathy over the loss and damage caused by recent storms in the Philippines.

For his part, Oban applauded Viet Nam's achievements in socio-economic development, national defence and security.

Both host and guest held that the two countries' armies still held great potential for co-operation as mentioned in the agreement in defence co-operation inked by the two countries' defence ministries in October last year.

They agreed to step up co-operation in the exchange of delegations and intelligence, to set up a high-level hotline, and co-operate on sea patrols, search and rescue drills and other fields of mutual concern.

Later the same day, General Oban met with Vietnamese Defence Minister General Phung Quang Thanh.

Hanoi to host ASEM green growth forum

Almost 180 domestic and international delegates will attend the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Green Growth Forum held in Hanoi on October 3-4 as an initiative of Vietnam at the eighth Asia - Europe Summit in Belgium last year.

The event, themed ‘Jointly acting towards green economies’, receives support from the Republic of Korea, the UK, Germany and the Netherlands. 

Participants will focus on discussing experience in planning and implementing national policies and strategies on green growth in Asia and Europe, increasing international organizations and institutions’ contributions and role in promoting green growth, and proposing measures to increase ASEM’s contributions to international common efforts and its cooperation towards green growth. 

The event offers a chance for Vietnam to gain experience and seek support from ASEM member countries in developing green growth models, protecting the environment as well as effectively exploiting natural resources. 

Green growth is a term to describe measures to encourage growth and economic development while ensuring environmental hygiene, preserving biodiversity and adapting to climate change. 

As one of 26 ASEM founding member countries, Vietnam has made important contributions to ASEM over the past 15 years, especially the successful hosting of the fifth ASEM Summit in 2004. 

Voters should offer more opinions: Party chief

Voters should have the chance to offer more opinions to the National Assembly (NA), thus improving the quality of lawmaking and supreme supervision of the legislative body.

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made the this statement at a meeting with voters in Ba Dinh district, Hanoi, on September 28 to hear their opinions and complaints ahead of the second session of the 13th National Assembly.

The Party chief emphasized the need push through educational reform by improving of education quality through specific mechanisms, guidelines for teachers and investment in facilities.

Regarding the fight against corruption and wastefulness, he urged Party officials and members as well as people to follow Ho Chi Minh’s moral example with practical deeds.

The voters expressed their opinions and recommendations on the compensation policy for site clearance, the interests of those whose land is repossessed, particularly job generation and life insurance for these people, policies on price management, bank interest rates and educational quality.

They also mentioned policies on the salary and livelihood of public servants and wage earners who face difficulties caused by the rising prices of essential goods.

VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA