The 12th plenum of the 12th Party Central Committee (PCC) wrapped up in Hanoi on May 14 after four days of working. All agenda items were completed.

Vietnam reported no new COVID-19 cases on May 14 morning, marking it four weeks in a row without any community transmissions, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

Members of the National Assembly Committee of Legal Affairs on May 12 agreed to a new identification system to replace household residency books.

Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong has required members of the Party Central Committee (PCC) to uphold their sense of responsibility and objectivity in addressing issues tabled for discussion at the 12th PCC plenum, especially personnel work.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has called for greater efforts to restart the national economy with the aim of achieving a GDP growth rate of over 5 percent and keeping inflation under 4 percent this year.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc appreciated the co-operation between Vietnam and the US in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic during phone talks with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has suggested member countries of the Non-Aligned Movement step up cooperation and share experience at all levels and in all spheres during the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Vietnam Fisheries Society (VINAFIS) released a document on Monday opposing China’s issuance of regulations banning fishing in the East Sea (South China Sea).

Vietnam’s export value saw a year-on-year increase of nearly 5 percent to an estimated USD 82.94 billion in the first four months of this year despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the General Statistics Office.

Even before Vietnam became affected by COVID-19 pandemic, poverty, economic growth and environmental issues were top concerns of citizens, according to the 2019 Vietnam Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI) report released on April 28 in Hanoi.

Vietnam attracted USD 12.33 billion in foreign direct investment in the first four months of 2020, a year-on-year decrease of 15.5 percent due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, according the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency.

Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong recently wrote an article that highlights some issues that need special attention in the personnel preparation for the approaching 13th National Party Congress.

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh on April 23 affirmed that Vietnam will enhance its cooperation with other countries, including the US, as well as the World Health Organisation and the international community in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietnam recorded no new cases of COVID-19 on April 24 morning, making it eight days in a row since April 16 without new infections, according to the National Steering Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control.

China’s circulation of a number of diplomatic notes at the United Nations that raise unreasonable sovereignty claims over Vietnam’s Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos as well as maritime claims in the East Sea runs counter to the provisions of the 1982 UNCLOS, an official said on April 23.

Vietnam strongly protests the establishment of the so-called “Sansha city” and related acts as they seriously violated Vietnam’s sovereignty, the spokesperson of Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry Le Thi Thu Hang said on April 19.

The Special ASEAN Plus Three Summit on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) via video conference on April 13 issued a joint statement. The following is the full text of the joint statement.

ASEAN leaders adopted the Declaration of the Special ASEAN Summit on COVID-19 at the end of the online Special ASEAN Summit on the pandemic which was chaired by Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on April 14, issuing first ever guidelines for coordinated efforts by the group against the pandemic.

Social distancing measures need to be lifted in a gradual and prudent manner that suits each locality’s situation so as to achieve the dual target of effectively controlling the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuring socio-economic development, according to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chaired the online Special ASEAN+3 Summit with China, Japan and the Republic of Korea on April 14 on the COVID-19 response, following the success of the Special ASEAN Summit on the same issue.