National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong arrived in Jakarta on February 28, beginning an official visit to Indonesia at the invitation of Speaker of the House of Representatives Marzuki Alie.

Tan Rai and Nhan Co Aluminum Plants will be the initial step for Vietnam to build and develop a big, long lasting and sustainable industry, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has said.

Vietnam’s Minister of Industry and Trade, Vu Huy Hoang, presided over the 16th unofficial meeting of the ASEAN economic ministers in Putrajay, Malaysia in February 27-28.

On February 28, State President Nguyen Minh Triet sent a message of sympathy to Chilean President Michelle Bachelet Jeria for the earthquake which caused great human and property losses on February 27.

Vietnam and India have established a strategic partnership and are implementing measures to boost the traditional ties of friendship and co-operation in many fields.

Sports, Culture and Tourism week 2010 opened in Tran Dynasty Temple relic area in Hung Ha district of the northern province of Thai Binh on February 27 in the presence of State President Nguyen Minh Triet and National Assembly Vice Chairman Uong Chu Luu.

The southern Indian State of Karnataka is wiling to boost cooperation with Vietnam in any areas of its strength, including cosmology, high technology and infrastructure construction, says Governor Hans Bhardwaj.

Specialists from ASEAN and Japan, the Republic of Korea and China (ASEAN+3) gathered in Hanoi on February 27 to discuss financial cooperation programmes to be submitted to the upcoming ASEAN Financial Minister conferences.

HCM City will host a joint preliminary meeting (JPM) and related meetings from March 1-3 in preparation for the 16th ASEAN summit to be held in Hanoi in April.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong flew to Bangalore city, Karnataka State, on February 26, continuing his official visit to India.

On February 26, Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Nguyen Phu Binh and his delegation paid lunar New Year visits to Radio Voice of Vietnam (VOV) bureau, the Vietnam Airlines office and representative office of the Hanoi municipal People’s Committee in Tokyo, Japan.

US war veterans have expressed their good impressions of Vietnam’s land and people, particularly the Vietnamese people’s spirit of reconciliation, according to a US-based Vietnam News Agency (VNA) correspondent.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Uong Chu Luu on February 26 received Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) officials who have been in Vietnam to examine development aid projects.

The National Assemblies of Vietnam and Cambodia will soon kick-start a project to install network equipment for information processing and Intranet access at all agencies of the Cambodia National Assembly.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan met online with two high-tech parks on February 26, listening to their proposals, which are aimed at removing obstacles to their growth.

New Zealand has pledged to give Vietnam technical support in the fields of agriculture and rural development, natural resources and environments.

Vietnam has now established diplomatic ties with 177 different countries and 244 economic and trade organisations around the world. This has helped Vietnam maintain socio-political stability and improve people’s living standards.

Vietnam consistently pursues a policy of preserving and promoting the time-honoured friendship and strategic partnership with India, said National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong while paying a courtesy visit to Indian President Pratbha Patil on February 25 as part of his trip to India.

Le Dung, Vietnamese Consul General in Houston, Texas, paid a working visit to Texas Tech University on February 24.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong and Lower House Speaker Meira Kumar agreed to increase all-round cooperation between the two countries during their talks in New Delhi on February 24.

Laos will host a symposium in Sainyabuli province in April to mark the establishment of the north-western resistance committee during Vietnam and Laos’ wars against the French colonialists.

Vietnam and Laos will work closer together to implement joint hydro-electric power projects, including the Sekarman I plant, to ensure they are completed on schedule.

Vietnam will offer more incentives for Norwegian businesses to operate efficiently in the country on an equal footing and mutually beneficial basis, says a Government leader.

Moscow will build a trade centre in Ho Chi Minh City and local labourers and materials will be used for construction, affirmed Moscow ’s First Deputy Mayor Vladimir Resin.

The Vietnam People’s Army and the Royal Cambodian Army will strengthen their cooperation in visit exchanges, training, border management and security, and the location and repatriation of Vietnamese martyrs’ remains.

Vietnam is committed to strengthening and broadening relations with Greece, Poland, France and Afghanistan, said State President Triet.

Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) is the country’s leading media agency, said To Huy Rua, Politburo member and Secretary of the Party Central Committee, during a visit to VOV on February 23.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy hosted a reception in celebration of the traditional Lunar New Year Festival (Tet) of Vietnam and China.

Hanoi and Moscow have agreed to increase cooperation in various areas, especially economics, trade, urban development planning, culture and tourism.

A delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) joined 40 international delegations at the 4th congress of the Brazilian Labour Party (PT) and the party’s 30th anniversary in the capital city of Brasilia on February 19-20.