Latest Vietnam government News
Vietnam approves $67 billion high-speed railway project between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh city
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam on Saturday approved the construction of a high-speed railway connecting the capital Hanoi in the north to Ho Chi Minh city in the south at an estimated cost of $67 billion. The ambitious railway line will stretch 1,541 kilometers (957 miles) between...
Vietnam appoints army general as new president after months of turmoil
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam elected Luong Cuong, a military general, as its new president on Monday, the fourth official to fill the largely ceremonial role in 18 months. Cuong, 67, was elected by the National Assembly to replace To Lam, who remained president even after he was...
Rights groups urge Thailand to release Vietnamese activist, saying he faces torture if extradited
BANGKOK (AP) — A group of nearly three dozen rights groups called on Thailand's prime minister Friday to release a Vietnamese activist who has been ordered extradited home to face imprisonment on terrorism charges, saying he faces the possibility of torture if returned. Y Quynh...
China's Premier Li talks trade in Vietnam despite differences over South China Sea
BANGKOK (AP) — China agreed Sunday to assist Vietnam on cross-border railway development and take steps to expand agricultural imports from its smaller neighbor, Vietnam’s official media said. Premier Li Qiang, on an official visit to Vietnam, pledged that China would further...
Blinken tells ASEAN the US is worried about China's 'dangerous' actions in disputed sea.
VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Southeast Asian leaders Friday that the U.S. is concerned about China's “increasingly dangerous and unlawful” activities in the disputed South China Sea during an annual summit meeting, and pledged the U.S. will continue to...
As big supermarkets pursue profits, new research shows growing exploitation of shrimp farmers
BANGKOK (AP) — Indonesian shrimp farmer Yulius Cahyonugroho operated more than two dozen ponds only a few years ago, employing seven people and making more than enough to support his family. Since then, the 39-year-old says the prices he gets from purchasers have fallen by half...
Crew of Vietnamese fishing boat injured in an attack in the South China Sea, state media say
HANOI (AP) — A Vietnamese fishing boat was attacked in the South China Sea near the Paracel Islands, claimed by both China and Vietnam, and 10 crew members were injured, Vietnamese state media said Monday. The Vietnamese boat radioed Sunday to report the attack, saying three...
Brazil drought punishes coffee farms and threatens to push prices even higher
CACONDE, Brazil (AP) — Silvio Almeida’s coffee plantation sits at an ideal altitude on a Brazilian hillside, whose clay-rich soil does well at retaining moisture from rainfall and a nearby reservoir. Lately, though, water is scarce on Almeida's modest farm in Caconde, a town in...
Vietnamese real estate tycoon, already sentenced to death for fraud, faces trial on new charges
HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — The second trial for Vietnamese real estate typcoon Truong My Lan — who was sentenced to death for financial fraud in April — started on Thursday, state media reported. The 67-year-old chair of the real estate company Van Thinh Phat was convicted for...
Are Indonesia and Vietnam's multibillion-dollar clean energy deals stuck? Experts say not yet
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesia and Vietnam signed multibillion-dollar energy transition deals in 2022 that were heralded as drastic shifts in financing that would enable the coal-dependent countries to pivot to cleaner energy. The deals, known as Just Energy Transition...