At the plenary session of the 19th OANA General Assembly held in Saint Petersburg, Russia, the Russian news agency TASS was elected President of the OANA until 2028, when the next General Assembly is set to be hosted by Azerbaijan’s national news agency AzerTAc.

More than 100 delegates representing news agencies from over 30 countries attended the 19th OANA General Assembly, held from June 18 - 21.

The VNA delegation, led by General Director Vu Viet Trang, actively participated in the event, engaging in both professional and diplomatic activities. Trang took part in a wide range of professional engagements and high-level meetings, significantly contributing to the VNA's international promotion. She was also interviewed by several foreign news agencies and held discussions with international colleagues on press management and strengthening global cooperation to improve information quality and efficiency.

Notably, on the opening day of the event, the VNA General Director was among 14 heads of international news agencies who interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin. In his remarks, President Putin affirmed that despite changes, the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Russia remain steadfast, with highlights recorded across the fields of energy, scientific research, investment, agriculture, and human resources training.

Within the framework of the General Assembly, the VNA and the Qatar News Agency (QNA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the exchange of information of various forms and delegation visits. The MoU paves the way for new avenues of cooperation, further strengthening its capacity to engage in regional and global media forums as well as other forms of journalistic collaboration.

The General Assembly also saw the presentation of the 2024 OANA Awards. The VNA won two first prizes: one in the article category for “Beeswax: a timeless treasure from wild bees” by the authors Quynh Trang, Bang Cao, Luong Thu Huong (https://vietnamnews.vn/life-style/1666008/beeswax-a-timeless-treasure-from-wild-bees.html); and another in the photo reportage category for “Doc dao vat cau nuoc lang Van” (The unique mud ball wrestling festival in Van village) by An Thanh Dat (https://en.vietnamplus.vn/vna-wins-two-first-prizes-at-oana-awards-2024-post310088.vnp). General Director Vu Viet Trang received the awards on behalf of the authors.

Additionally, photographic works by VNA photojournalists were selected for display at the OANA photo exhibition, which opened on June 19 and features outstanding photos from 25 Asia-Pacific news agencies.

Quang Ninh chairman receives OANA delegation

Chairman of the People’s Committee of the northern Quang Ninh province Nguyen Duc Long hosted a reception on April 20 for a delegation of delegates of news agencies attending the 44th Executive Board Meeting of the Organisation of the Asia Pacific News Agencies (OANA).