Commander of the Vietnam Coast Guard Region 1 Col. Tran Van Tho assigns tasks to Vietnamese officers joining the joint patrol. (Photo: qdnd.vn)

Vietnam, China conducts joint patrol along demarcation line in Gulf of Tonkin

Two vessels of the Vietnam Coast Guard (VCG) on April 25 departed from the northern port city of Hai Phong for a joint patrol mission with the China Coast Guard (CCG) in the vicinity of the countries’ demarcation line in the Gulf of Tonkin.

This joint patrol, the first of its kind between the two sides this year, will take place from April 27 to 29, spanning 255.5 nautical miles across 13 points. The route starts from a point lying 48 nautical miles northeast of Con Co island to another point 14 nautical miles southeast of Tran island.

The Vietnamese and Chinese coast guard forces are set to conduct discussions, inspection and supervision of fishing vessels operating in the adjacent waters of the demarcation line, dissemination of relevant regulations for the local community, and exchange experience and skills of search and rescue work at sea, cited VNA.

This marks the 8th time such a joint patrol between the sides in the area has been organized since the nations’ fisheries cooperation agreement expired on June 30, 2020.

Vietnam attends international security meeting in Russia

A Vietnamese delegation led by Minister of Public Security General To Lam is attending the 12th International Meeting of High Representatives for Security Issues which is running from April 23 to April 25 in Russia’s St. Petersburg city.

The event features the participation of security council secretaries, national security advisors and assistants, deputy prime ministers, and heads of law enforcement agencies and intelligence agencies of 106 countries and territories, alongside representatives of 10 separate international organizations.

Nikolai Patrushev, secretary of the Russian Security Council, said at a plenary session held on April 24 that the meeting will serve to open up plenty of opportunities for the delegates to exchange experience and to seek new approaches and common solutions to pressing regional and global security issues.

In his address, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that international terrorism remains one of the gravest threats of the 21st century, going on to highlight the issue of safeguarding the information space from both external and internal threats.

Minister of Public Security General To Lam addresses the meeting.

“This topic is of great importance for all nations, as it significantly contributes to ensuring national security, social stability, and economic development,” he said.

“We strongly advocate for the systematic and concerted efforts of the global community in establishing unified, legally binding norms and principles governing state conduct in the information domain,” President Putin said.

Upon addressing the plenary session, Minister of Public Security General To Lam briefed participants on the high-tech crime situation in the nation which is among the three Asia-Pacific countries hardest hit by cyberattacks, according to VOV.

He underlined the need to step up multilateral cooperation within such frameworks as the International Criminal Police Organisation (Interpol), the European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol), the ASEAN National Police (Aseanapol), and other mechanisms. This should be done as part to both regulating and supporting countries in ensuring cyber security, whilst preventing, combating, and handling cybercrime and transnational crime.

Moving forward, the Vietnamese side aspires to intensify exchange experience and initiatives with partners and international friends in crime prevention and control, whilst also protecting national sovereignty in cyberspace, he added.

Earlier on April 23, Minister To Lam held a bilateral meeting with Patrushev, during which they shared their desire to promote dialogues and collaboration between law enforcement forces of the two nations.

Vietnam-Singapore trade on the rise since start of 2024

Trade between Vietnam and Singapore topped 2.54 billion SGD (1.87 billion USD) in March, rising 4.29% year on year, according to the Trade Office of Vietnam in the city state.

Vietnam’s exports to Singapore last month increased 7.69% to 603.3 million SGD while its imports went up 3.27% to over 1.93 billion SGD.

In the first quarter, bilateral trade surpassed 7.71 billion SGD, up 4.21% from the same period last year. Vietnam recorded over 1.83 billion SGD in exports to and nearly 5.89 billion SGD in imports from Singapore, respectively growing 15.22% and 1.2%, VNA reported.

With this result, Vietnam remains the 10th largest trading partner of Singapore, the Trade Office said.

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)

Among the three groups of Vietnam’s key exports, only machinery and equipment, mobile phones and components, and spare parts posted growth, at 25.14%. The two remainders witnessed revenue declines, namely reactors, boilers, machine tools, and spare parts of those machines (down 8.25%), along with petrol, oil, and petroleum products (down 18.79%).

Some commodities enjoyed export surges such as animal and plant oil and fat (up nearly 500-fold), rice and cereal (up nearly two-fold), and steel (up over 1.8-fold). Others saw plunges in shipments to Singapore, including salt, sulfur, earth and stone, plaster, lime, and cement (down 33.64%), together with timber and wood products (down 35.65%).

Regarding imports from Singapore, 12 of 21 groups of commodities experienced import decreases, including reactors, boilers, machine tools, and spare parts of those machines (down 46%).

The import value of Singapore’s machinery, equipment, mobile phones, components, and spare parts rose 4.84% while petrol, oil and petroleum grew 46.72%. Imports of others also increased sharply such as zinc and zinc products (up 4.18-fold), and pearl, gemstone and jewelry (up 16-fold), statistics showed.

Vietnam affirms unwavering stance on Chinese fishing ban in East Sea

Vietnam's stance on China's fishing ban in the East Sea remains consistent and has been clearly asserted over the past years.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang made this affirmation at a routine press briefing held on April 25 in Hanoi in reply to a reporters' query about the country’s reaction regarding Chinese fishing ban in the East Sea, cited VOV.

Photo: VOV

The Chinese fishing ban not only violates Vietnamese sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracels), but also the nation’s sovereign rights and jurisdiction over its exclusive economic zone determined under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS).

Vietnam therefore requests that China respects its sovereignty over Hoang Sa and its sovereignty, sovereign rights, and jurisdiction over Vietnamese maritime zones without further complicating the situation as a contribution to maintaining peace, stability, and order in the East Sea.

Northern VN transitions into scorching heat after prolonged rainy days

Following a stretch of strong thunderstorms, the Northern region of Vietnam will enter a period of intense heat starting today, April 25.

Meteorological experts explain that the cool air mass, which brought rain to the North, has shifted entirely Eastward, allowing a hot low-pressure system in the West to dominate. Consequently, from April 25 onwards, Hanoi and the Northern region will experience a series of sunny days, though not excessively scorching, SGGP reported.

Starting tomorrow, April 26, temperatures in Hanoi and the Northern region will rapidly rise, and intense heat will last until the end of April 30, with highs reaching around 37 degrees Celsius. In urban areas, temperatures could even peak at 38 degrees Celsius due to limited greenery and the concrete effect. In the upcoming days, the weather will not only be hot but also dry, causing a feeling of exhaustion due to the "early summer" effect (the abrupt transition from cool to hot weather, which the body has not fully adjusted to). On the last day of the holiday (May 1), the Northern region will experience cooler weather, followed by 1-2 days of heavy rain.

In the Central region, from now until the end of the holiday, the heat will intensify, becoming more severe than in recent days. Temperature forecasts suggest that temperatures may exceed 40 degrees Celsius in many areas, particularly in the North Central region. The scorching sun will appear in the early morning and persist until late evening, around 5-6 p.m. The oppressive heat will continue until 8-9 p.m., even after sunset, with temperatures remaining as high as 30-31 degrees Celsius.

In the Southern and Central Highlands regions, the hot weather will not be as severe as in the Central region. However, from now until the end of the weekend and throughout the holiday, temperatures are expected to range between 35 and 37 degrees Celsius. In some parts of the Southeastern region, temperatures may even surpass 37 degrees Celsius. Rainfall is scarce in the South, while signs of prolonged heat are prevalent.

Although rainfall has decreased in the Northern region to pave the way for scorching heat, meteorological experts note that this evening, provinces like Son La, Hoa Binh, and Dien Bien may experience localized thunderstorms. Precautions should be taken for thunder, lightning, strong winds, and hail.

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