Vietnam has always attached great importance to and actively participated in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) mechanisms through initiatives and specific contributions to all GMS cooperation programmes.

World economy is facing gloomy prospects and all countries need to take action to deal with the global challenge, said the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday.

Despite boasting great potential for solar power development, Vietnam has just made little use of it due to a lack of a detailed roadmap and incentive policies.

Vietnam’s representative Nguyen Thi Thu Huong has just been named the second runner-up at the final round of this year’s Mrs. World pageant which was held in Orlando, Florida on December 15.

VietNamNet Bridge – If Vietnam does not focus on developing high technologies, but continues relying on the natural resources and cheap labor force, its technologies will never be competitive in the world market.

The European Union (EU) will hold on to the euro and will emerge from the crisis stronger, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said on Thursday.

The Standing Committee of the National Assembly met on Thursday to discuss and deliberate on drafts for labor and price laws, and a proposal to extend maternity leave for female employees for a period of six months.

HCMC youth spend big to buy Christmas spirit; Three possible trends for bank restructuring; Vegetable and fruit exports hit US$600 million; Local mobile operators set prices for iPhone 4S; Five key solutions for industrial development  

VietNamNet Bridge – Taking advantage of a blackout, worker Le Cong Chanh of the Tan Binh Phu Co., Ltd. in the central province of Phu Yen, lied down on a pile of paper on the floor to sleep and he was ground by a paper grinder.

VietNamNet Bridge – A Canadian FC, Vancouver Whitecaps defeated five rivals in the close auction, held by the US Major League Soccer (MLS) to buy Vietnamese origin player Lee Nguyen on December 14.

VietNamNet Bridge – Delivering the message “don’t discriminate AIDS carriers”, a group of students from the central city of Da Nang have won the highest prize of the Asian Student Film Festival in Japan for “Lan, Don’t Cry.”

Rockers, rappers gather for Stay Cool concert in Danang; National broadcaster launches Vietnam’s “Billboard”; Exhibition features four decades of Vietnam film festivals; Hanoi exhibition contrasts pre and post doi moi periods    

Solo exhibition ‘A Herd of Unidentified Cows’ by artist Nguyen The Dzung, featuring 16 artworks of cow portraits with human bodies, will open at Cactus Contemporary Art Gallery tomorrow evening.

The Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC) has conferred Victoria’s Multicultural Award for Excellence 2011 on the President of the Vietnam Business Association in Australia (VBAA), Tran Ba Phuc.

The Vietnamese COP 17 delegation has committed to cooperating closely with the international community in the struggle against climate change.

VietNamNet Bridge – Polluting Tam Dao Golf Course in northern Vinh Phuc Province keeps ignoring provincial authorities’ requests to treat its wastes, creating a stir among local residents.

Two people were critically injured in a rampant shooting in the city of Bottrop in western Germany on Thursday.

 Official calls for crackdown on fuel fraud; Two injured in cigarette explosion at café; New terminal opens in Da Nang; Man arrested for attempting to rob taxi

VietNamNet Bridge – The national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, will operate 11 direct flights from Can Tho to Taiwan (China) and vice versa during the 2012 lunar New Year.

Former French President Jacques Chirac said he would not appeal the verdict made earlier on Thursday which gave him a two-year suspended sentence for corruption.