Hanoi People’s Council concludes seventh session

The seventh session of the Hanoi People’s Council closed on July 6, with the adoption of 19 resolutions and a vote of confidence for 18 people selected by the council.

In his speech at the closing session, chairman of the Municipal People’s , Nguyen The Thao said that despite facing difficulties in the first half of this year, Hanoi achieved its three major targets: higher economic growth, lower inflation and improved social welfare, which will create a premise for the city to improve its socio-economic performance in future.

Photo: VOV

However, the municipal leader also acknowledged pending issues related to economic and social affairs and management that needed resolution.

He underlined the need to keep the market in check, gain higher economic growth, create more jobs, ensure social welfare, budget revenue and political stability and improve administrative management efficiency.

The municipal council decided to reduce regular spending by 10 percent, in order to invest in building key transport projects and developing agricultural facilities.

Streamlining administrative formalities to facilitate business operations and continuing to properly implement the Law on the Capital City, along with urgent measures to fulfil socio-economic goals are other priorities in the second half and designed to meet people’s expectations, Thao said.

Official extends eternal gratitude to war veterans

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan has pledged that the Party and Government of Viet Nam will always pay tribute to war veterans and martyrs and never forget their sacrifices for the development of the nation.

Last Friday, Nhan met with a delegation of national heroes visiting the capital from central Quang Tri Province.

Nhan expressed sympathy for the losses they had suffered in their fight for the country's unification and development and stated his personal admiration for each of them. He extended his praise to the heroic mothers and families of martyrs and declared that the sacrifices made by their loved ones in the name of Viet Nam would never be forgotten.

Nhan called on national heroes to stand as role models to the next generation, helping them to uphold the spirit of the revolution and understand the importance of the continued development and defence of the nation.

Meanwhile, a leader of the visiting delegation, Deputy Director of Quang Tri's Department of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs Hoang Tuan Anh, expressed his thanks to the Party and State for the preferential policies given to those who rendered their services to the country, including the members of his group.

Platform DK1 marks 24th founding anniversary

An economics-science-service complex, known as Platform DK1, has played an important role in defending the country’s sovereignty over its islands, seas and continental shelf over the past 24 years.

On the platform’s 24 th founding anniversary (July 5, 1989), officers and soldiers stationed on the structure, which is managed by the Naval Zone 2 in the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, joined others in a celebration where they recounted the heroic times that generations of their peers had undergone in building and developing the complex.

Firstly known as platform Tu Chinh A, the establishment of DK1 was seen as a milestone in the nation’s course of protecting the sovereignty over its southern continental shelf.

Over the years, DK1 officers and soldiers have overcome various difficulties to keep the country’s sea in peace, and seven of them had fallen down on duty.

For their contributions, battalion DK1 was awarded the title “Hero of the People’s Armed Forces in the renewal period” in 2005, and other honours and certificates of merit.

At the ceremony, officers and soldiers expressed their resolve to uphold the heroic tradition to accomplish the tasks entrusted by the Party and State.

CPV boosts ties with Labour Party of Mexico

The Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and the Labour Party of Mexico (PT) are set to carry out new measures and activities to boost multi-faceted ties between the two nations.

The agreement was reached during a working visit to Mexico from June 30 to July 4 by a CPV delegation headed by Vu Ngoc Hoang, Permanent Deputy Head of the CPV Central Committee’s Popularisation and Education Commission.

During the visit, Hoang held a working session with Alberto Anaya Gutierrez, PT National Coordinator in Mexico City to discuss the partnership between their parties and between the two countries as well.

Both sides expressed satisfaction with the smooth development of the two parties’ relations, enhanced by joint activities conducted in 2012 and the first six months of 2013.

The two sides agreed that innovative measures should be introduced to build further ties on the already established foundation of friendship.

In further talks, Gutierrez updated his guest about the progress of the Mexico-Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Group headed by the PT for the 2012-2018 tenure, which will made debut in mid September.

He also announced the donation of 50 wheelchairs to Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange/dioxin.

Earlier, Hoang had a meeting with Isy de la Luz Rivas, a PT senior official in charge of publication, propaganda and education in Mexico.

Mexico was the second leg of Hoang’ tour of Latin America, following a visit to Cuba.

HCM City meeting marks US Independence Day

The Ho Chi Minh City Union of Friendship Organisations (HUFO) held a meeting on July 5 to celebrate the 237th US Independence Day (July 4).

Vietnam-US Friendship Association HCM City Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Ngoc Phuong summarised the bilateral relationship’s streak of success following the normalisation of relations in 1995.

She highlighted triumphs in economics, trade, investment, science and technology, education, national defence and security, climate change, and Vietnamese infrastructure upgardes.

Two-way trade turnover has jumped from US$2 billion in 2001 to US$26 billion last year, she added.

Phuong said Vietnam regards the US as the leading partner and expressed hope the two countries will continue collaborating on counterterrorism, transnational crime prevention, humanitarian aid efforts, and marine safety and security in the East Sea, thereby maintaining regional and international peace and stability.

The HUFO capitalised on the occasion to present US Consul General in HCM City Le Thanh An with the “For Peace and Friendship among Nations” insignia, recognising his contributions to the Vietnam-US relationship and other social and charitable activities.

VNN/VOV/VNS/VNA