☕ Afternoon briefing on July 20

Hanoi (VNA) - The following is a brief review of the day’s events as reported by the Vietnam News Agency.

– State President Vo Van Thuong joined other officials and former leaders at an art performance in tribute to martyrs, revolutionaries on July 19, on the occasion of the 76th anniversary of War Invalids and Martyrs Day (July 27, 1947-2023).
The event, which virtually connected Hang Duong Cemetery in Con Dao in the southern province of Ba Ria - Vung Tau and Martyrs' Cemetery A1 in the northwestern province of Dien Bien, was jointly organised by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the People’s Committees of the two localities. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Chairman of the Coordinating Council for Red River Delta Region, chaired its first meeting in Hanoi on July 20.
The meeting was held right after the PM decided to establish the coordinating councils for the northern and coastal central region, the southeastern region, the Red River Delta region, and the Central Highlands region. Read full story

– Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, his spouse and his entourage arrived in Hanoi on July 20, beginning a two-day official visit to Vietnam at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh.
Anwar Ibrahim is accompanied by Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, and Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Security Chan Foong Hin, among others. Read full story

– Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People's Army Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Doan Anh on July 20 received a delegation from the Information Department under the General Staff of the Lao People's Army (LPA), led by its Director Col. Souban Phanthavi.
Anh said that Vietnam-Laos defence cooperation has been implemented in a more substantive and effective manner, particularly in training and expert exchanges. Read full story

– The Vietnam – US trade relations are enjoying strong growth after the US concluded its investigation related to Section 301 into Vietnam’s alleged import and use of timber illegally harvested or traded, and removed Vietnam from its currency manipulation list, said Trade Counsellor of Vietnam in the US Do Ngoc Hung.

According to Hung, this demonstrates appropriate guidance from relevant Vietnamese agencies such as the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the State Bank of Vietnam, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Finance, and coordination of the Vietnamese Embassy in the US, which all help foster a sustainable economic and trade relationship between the two countries. Read full story

– Remittances to Ho Chi Minh in the first half of 2023 topped 4.33 billion USD, an increase of 37% compared to the same period last year, the State Bank of Vietnam’s (SBV) HCM City branch reported.
Nguyen Duc Lenh, deputy director of the branch, said the city always has favourable policy incentives that attract remittances, including tax and fee exemptions for recipients, and the availability of increasingly convenient methods for money transfer. Read full story

– Foreign investment attracted by the northern province of Quang Ninh in the first half of 2023 is nearly equivalent to its target set for the whole year.
In the period, the locality drew over 832 million USD in foreign direct investment (FDI), equal to 83% of that set in the provincial Party Committee’s Resolution and 69.3% in the provincial People’s Committee plan. Read full story./.