Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's January 9-10 visit to Laos, the first foreign trip of a Vietnamese leader this year, has been hailed as a success by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Do Hung Viet.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with President of the Lao National Assembly Saysomphone Phomvihane in Vientiane on January 10, as part of his ongoing Laos visit to co-chair the 47th meeting of the Vietnam – Laos Inter-Governmental Committee.

Secretary of the Party Central Committee and head of its Commission for External Relations Le Hoai Trung is on a working visit to Singapore from January 7-11 at the invitation of Singaporean Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Bounthong Chitmany, Permanent member of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP) Central Committee’s Secretariat and State Vice President of Laos in Vientiane on January 10.

The Hanoi People’s Court sentenced a lawyer to three years in prison for “abusing the rights to freedom and democracy to violate interests of the State, rights and legitimate interests of organisations and individuals” at a first-instance trial held on January 9 - 10.

Memorial and reburial services for the remains of some Vietnamese volunteer soldiers who laid down their lives in Laos during wartime were held at the Tong Khao martyrs’ cemetery in the northwestern province of Dien Bien on January 10.

The number of Russian tourists to Vietnam rose 84.9% to 232,300 in 2024 despite the shortage of direct and charter flights from Russian regions, according to the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR).

An investment proposal of database centre project has been approved by the Da Nang Hi-Tech Park and Industrial Zones Authority (HPIZA), marking the first of its kind in the central city’s Hi-tech Park in 2025.

Big investment should be made to accelerate digital transformation in the logistics sector, which plays a pivotal role in Vietnam’s socio-economic landscape, creating significant value addition and contributing to the nation's import-export growth.

Cashless payment activities and the digital transformation of the banking sector is continuing to achieve positive results.