Spokeswoman of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang. Photo: VNA

Vietnam opposes and demands Taiwan to cancel live-fire drills on Ba Binh island

Vietnam resolutely opposes and demands Taiwan to cancel live-fire drills in the waters around Ba Binh island belonging to Vietnam’s Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago and not to repeat similar violations in the future, Spokeswoman of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said on July 2.

Answering a reporter's query on Vietnam’s reaction to the live-fire drills conducted by Taiwan on June 28 and 29, Hang said the exercises seriously violated Vietnam’s territorial sovereignty over the Truong Sa archipelago; threatened peace, stability, safety and security of navigation; induced tensions and complicated the situation in the Bien Dong Sea.

She stressed that Vietnam's stance on Taiwan's live-fire drills in the waters around Ba Binh island belonging to Vietnam's Truong Sa archipelago is clear, consistent and affirmed over the past years.

Five local destinations win Asia’s Best Awards

Five Vietnamese destinations were named among the Top 10 leading cities and islands in the Southeast Asian region, as announced by US magazine Travel + Leisure’s Asia’s Best Awards 2022.

The latest ranking marks the first time that Travel + Leisure has awarded Asia’s Best Awards for destinations, hotels, resorts, restaurants, and bars according to the votes made by readers between January and April this year.

In line with the rankings, Phu Quoc and Con Dao were named among the Top 10 leading islands in the Southeast Asian region, alongside Phuket of Thailand, Bali of Indonesia, and Palawan of the Philippines, according to VOV.

Photo: David Keith Brown / Alamy Stock Photo

Most notably, among the Top 10 leading cities in the Southeast Asian region, the nation had three representatives in the list, including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang.

Elsewhere, Bangkok and Chiang Mai of Thailand were named in the list together with five destinations from different cities and territories.

Da Nang strives to develop itself into ‘liveable’ city

With stable growth in the economy, infrastructure, urban management, tourism and investment attraction, the central city of Da Nang is challenging to develop into a ‘liveable’ city of regional and global status.

Economist Vo Tri Thanh said at a seminar on how to develop Da Nang as a destination and a liveable city in Vietnam and region, emphasising that the central city had not yet approached the ‘liveable’ standard and it needed much progress to reach the target.

Thanh said Da Nang had been known as a favourite destination in Vietnam but was not yet a ‘worth living’ location in terms of enjoyment, relaxation, and entertainment.

“A ‘liveable’ city requires maximising consumption, commodities, working places while promoting a ‘green’ environment, humanity, safe, smart and sustainable conditions. It means that everything is available to the needs of the people,” Thanh said.

“The city should have a favourable business environment, hospitality, good working space condition, and accommodations in comparison to luxury areas such as Dubai and Singapore.”

Tran Dinh Thien, former Director of the Vietnam Institute of Economics, said Da Nang had a decade of economic development from 2010-2020.

He said the city increased the Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP) by eight times as much as in 2010 while making it in the top-ten group in Provincial Competitive Index (PCI) Public Administration Performance Index from 2006-2021 and hosting 8.7 million tourists in the successful year of 2019.

Thien said the city had formed an attractive urban city in central Vietnam by planning key deep-sea airports, high-tech parks, an innovation centre, a logistics and multi-transport service centre, and a digital and smart urban city.

Luong Hoai Nam, a member of the Vietnam Tourism Advisory Council, suggested that Da Nang should build a destination for the ‘super rich’ with luxurious services at the airport, and a yacht harbour with docking for long stays.

He said the Covid-19 was a chance for luxury service promotion as ‘rich’ people sought a ‘safe’ location or hidden destination as a safe shelter for their family members.

Nam said Da Nang Airport, which plans to upgrade new terminals and a cargo terminal could handle 40 million passengers if it expands to the east with available area.

He also said visa exemptions should be applied to potential markets such as the European Union, India, Japan and others to boost the post-Covid-19 tourism recovery.

Tran Nguyen, head of the business section of Sun Group, said tourism was seen as one of the best income industries in Da Nang before the Covid-19 pandemic broke out.

“We have been investing in unique entertainment projects and night-time festivals in the mountainous Sun World Ba Na Hills, Asia Park, Sky36 bar, beach musical fest, carnival, Electronic Dance Music (EDM) shows in offering day and night service for visitors,” Nguyen said.

She said the 10,000-seat restaurant and vine tunnel in Ba Na Hills – 1,500m above sea level – would be the favourite choice for nighttime entertainment during weekends and summer vacations.

Nguyen also said Sun Group debuted its airline, Sun Air, offering private jets service for ‘super rich’ people visiting Da Nang and Vietnam.

She said the InterContinental Da Nang Sun Peninsula Resort – awarded the World’s Leading Luxury Resort in 2014-2016 – had been one of the most luxurious accommodations for wealthy tourists.

The resort hosted a three-day vacation for billionaire financier George Soros in 2012.

The Golden Bridge offers a check-in for tourists visiting the Sun World Ba Na Hills in Da Nang. The city has been designed as a liveable urban city. Photo: Sun Group

Director of the city’s Department of Tourism Truong Thi Hong Hanh said the entertainment service of Sun Group attracted 60% of tourists visiting the city.

The city’s tourism, which hosted 8.7 million tourists in 2019, was damaged by Covid-19 in 2010-2021, but it expects to recover soon with a plan of receiving 3.5 million tourists in 2022.

Tourism made 23.7% of the city’s GRDP in recent years, reported VNA.

Huynh Thi Lien Phuong, Director of the city’s Investment Promotion Agency (IPA), said Da Nang had been revving up preparations for pivot projects such as an international finance centre, duty-free zone, nursing home, and international school with a hope that visitors would choose Da Nang as a second home, she said.

Da Nang has been planning to become a ‘smart city’ and the first in Vietnam to join the ASEAN ‘smart’ city network by 2030 in the form of a world destination and a ‘liveable’ city.

The new Lien Chieu port will be constructed by the third quarter of 2022 for handling cargo ships with 100,000 deadweight tonnage (DWT) and container ships with loading capacities from 6,000 to 8,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), according to the city’s IPA.

The Da Nang International Airport will handle 28 million passengers and 200,000 tonnes of cargo by 2030.

The Republic of Korea’s LG Electronics began construction of its R&D centre – the second in Vietnam – in Da Nang in 2021, while the city will offer the most favourable conditions for Samsung to expand cooperation and investment in the city and central Vietnam.

A top resort and a residential project – Mikazuki Japanese Resort & Spa (168.16 million USD investment) and Fusion resort & villas Da Nang (nearly 100 million USD) – were open for hosting visitors in the post-Covid-19 era in the city.

Peter Meyer, General Director of Fusion resort & villas Da Nang, said: "Fusion Resort & Villas Danang will meet the high demand for lifestyle and relaxation as well as wellness in Vietnam."

Vietnam looks forwards to stronger investment from US, Europe

Vietnam is hoping to attract more investment from the US, Europe and major global enterprises under a recently approved strategy on foreign investment cooperation.

The strategy for 2021 - 2030, signed off by Permanent Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh, aims at raising capital flows from countries and territories in certain regions to over 70% of total foreign investment in Vietnam during 2021 - 2025 and 75% during 2026 - 2030.

The targeted partners include the Republic of Korea (RoK), Japan, Singapore, China, Taiwan (China), Malaysia, Thailand, India, Indonesia, and the Philippines in Asia; France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Russia and the UK in Europe, and the US.

This strategy also looks to raise the number of multinationals listed in Fortune Global 500 operating in Vietnam by 50%.

According to Dau tu (Vietnam Investment Review), the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment has held a working session with Intel. Details about this meeting haven’t been revealed, but it was likely about the next investment stage of the US-based firm in Vietnam.

Illustrative image. Photo: VNA

During a trip to the US in mid-May, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Keyvan Esfarjani, Executive Vice President for manufacturing, supply chain and operations at Intel, who highly valued Vietnam’s role in his group’s production chain and held that the country has high potential for technology businesses to continue expanding operations.

Only 10 days after that meeting, PM Chinh received Intel CEO Patrick Gelsinger in Hanoi. The host leader asked Intel to continue its investment, and Gelsinger said his firm had decided to scale up investment many times higher than the current level.

The new investment by Intel could mark the start of a new chapter for Vietnam’s foreign investment attraction. Intel invested 1 billion USD into the country over 10 years ago, and a number of tech giants have flocked to Vietnam since then.

Now, with the commitment to multiply its investment, Intel is likely to become one of the first foreign investors to benefit from special preferential treatment that the Government gives to large-scale and high-tech projects, according to the newspaper.

At the recent launch of an annual FDI report, Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises Nguyen Mai pointed out that investment from Europe and the US remains modest, while Japan, the RoK, Singapore and Taiwan are still the largest investors.

Though the US is one of Vietnam’s top trade partners, it only ranks 11th among foreign investors, and the same can also be seen in investment from the EU, he noted.

Phan Huu Thang, former Director of the Foreign Investment Agency, explained that Vietnam is in close proximity to East Asian countries, which is favourable for trading. Besides, Asian investors are also more familiar with the local customs and investment environment while Vietnam has signed free trade agreements with these partners.

It is believed that opportunities have never been so big for Vietnam to attract investment from the US and the EU, which can be proved through American and European businesses’ affirmation of their special interest in the Southeast Asian nation during Vietnamese leaders’ recent visits to these destinations.

Intel’s plan to increase investment and the recent “green” investment worth over 1.3 billion USD by Denmark’s LEGO promise a bright future for more investment from the US and the EU, according Dau tu.

Firms poised to join Greater Mekong Subregion International Trade Fair

The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) - Quang Tri 2022 International Trade Fair is set take place from July 25 to July 31 at Cua Viet Tourist Service Area, with the event projected to draw 500 standard booths from over 300 businesses, units, and trade promotion organizations.

According to Le Duc Tien, vice chairman of the Quang Tri provincial People's Committee, the fair is taking place as part of the National Program on Trade Promotion, which is an important trade promotion activity taking place in Quang Tri province this year.

The fair is also viewed as an opportunity in which to boost co-operation, economic development, cultural exchanges, and market expansion, while simultaneously improving competitiveness and promoting the brand of imported and exported products of Quang Tri province. In addition, it will contribute to boost items originating from other provinces and cities throughout the country and GMS nations, cited VOV.

The Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) - Quang Tri 2022 International Trade Fair is set to transpire from July 25 to July 31 at Cua Viet Tourist Service Area. Photo: baodautu.vn

The event will serve as a platform in which to link trade, investment, and tourism promotion, thereby creating optimal conditions in which businesses and trade promotion agencies both at home and abroad can meet, introduce, and exchange products and goods, along with seeking further investment opportunities. This is along with conducting negotiations toward the signing of contracts and porpuliarising products and brands for consumers and visitors, Tien said.

According to the Quang Tri Trade and Investment Promotion Center, the scheme, in addition to goods display activities, will see a signing ceremony of economic contracts take place, as well as a memorandum of understanding on co-operation, investment, and other trade activities to connect supply and demand.

Furthermore, the function will also combine programmes to introduce tours to Quang Tri with GMS nations.

The fair also marked the return of normal operations of two international border gates Lao Bao and La Lay after a two-year hiatus due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Vietnam News Today (Jun 29): Noi Bai Airport Overwhelmed by Rising Passenger Numbers Vietnam News Today (Jun 29): Covid-19: 769 cases added to national caseload on June 28; 19 foreign airlines to run routes to Da Nang over ...

Vietnam News Today (Jun 30): Foreign Arrivals Surge by 6.8 Times in Six Months Vietnam News Today (Jun 30): Vietnam, Belgium seek to promote trade and investment links, Foreign arrivals surge by 6.8 times in six months

Vietnam News Today (Jul. 2): Tropical Storm Chaba Picks Up Strength as It Moves Northwest Vietnam News Today (Jul. 2): Vietnam reaffirms commitments on development of blue and sustainable oceans; Tropical storm Chaba picks up strength as it moves northwest; ...