National Assembly Chairman pledges to promote co-operation with Japan; Escalating East Sea disputes ‘have become a global issue'; Vietnam advocates closer cooperation against piracy

Lawmakers yesterday agreed to pass the Law on the Capital City, which contains the position and role of the capital city, and the responsibilities of the National Assembly, Government and people in protecting and developing the city.

Substandard hydropower projects will continue facing Days of Judgment until next year.Minister of Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang told the National Assembly's Q&A session that the MoIT and local authorities since late 2009

VietNamNet Bridge – Around 2,000-3,000 Vietnamese football fans will go to Bangkok, Thailand to support the Vietnamese national football team in the AFF Cup.

 VietNamNet Bridge – Ha Noi has just ratified the administrative boundary expansion plan for its southern and western districts, including Ha Dong, Thanh Xuan, Dong Da, Cau Giay and Tu Liem.

 South Africa increased its scale of HIV treatment by 75 percent, allowing 1.7 million people to have access to the life-saving treatment, a new United Nations Program on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) report revealed on Wednesday.

The State Bank of Vietnam has been making every effort to push up lending. However, commercial banks believe that the credit growth rate would be no more than five percent by the end of the year.

VietNamNet Bridge - With their "iron horses," a group of motorcycle taxi drivers have taken foreign visitors to every corner of the country.

It always surprises people that the domestic gold price does not come in line with the international price. Which power in Vietnam can define the gold price, then?

 Between Sunday night and Monday morning, five tremors occurred in Bac Tra My District in the central province of Quang Nam, sending shock waves among the local people who dared not sleep all through the night.  

Vietnamese telecom firms have unanimously charged foreign telecom exploiters higher for the services of connecting the inbound calls with the subscribers in Vietnam.

Industrial hazardous waste discharged in Binh Duong province has been carried to the neighboring province of Dong Nai, where they are thrown to the fallow.

VietNamNet Bridge - In the first National Assembly session in 2013, the National Assembly will conduct the vote of confidence for the positions such as the President, the National Assembly Chair, the Prime Minister and others.

VietNamNet Bridge – More monkeys are appearing in the southern province of Ca Mau and they are protected by local people.

Parents nowadays have to bring their children to two places a day – nursery schools, where they stay from the morning to afternoon, and to household run child-minding classes, where they stay from after-school hours to 7 pm.

After several years of eyeing the Vietnamese aviation market, foreign airlines now move ahead with their plans to increase their presence in Vietnam.

 VietNamNet Bridge – The ongoing economic crisis has not hit the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta's tourism sector too hard, Sai Gon Giai Phong (Sai Gon Liberation) newspaper has reported.

Cashew machines make a mark; Banks face struggle for profits in final quarter; Technology transfer policies lashed; Foreign-owned brokerages face hurdles; VNPT hands off Post Corporation; Hanoi uncovers gross land misuse

 VietNamNet Bridge – The southern province of Kien Giang needs more than US$44 million to cope with climate change, according to the German International Cooperation (GIZ).

 VietNamNet Bridge – Vietnamese and Japanese experts discussed bilateral cooperation on the use of nuclear energy for the purposes of peace, security, and nuclear non-proliferation in Hanoi on November 20.