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Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Tran Thanh Man (left) and Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Victorovich Volodin at their meeting in Moscow on September 9. (Photo: VNA)

Vietnam - Russia parliamentary ties flourishing unceasingly: top legislators

Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly (NA) Tran Thanh Man and Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Vyacheslav Victorovich Volodin held talks in Moscow on September 9, highlighting parliamentary cooperation as a highly important pillar that has been developing unceasingly.

Welcoming Man on his first official visit to Russia after his election as Chairman of the Vietnamese NA, Volodin said he believed that following this trip, high-level meetings between the two parliaments will be organized more frequently, creating a solid stepping stone for the development of the Russia - Vietnam comprehensive strategic partnership.

Man affirmed that the Party, State, and people of Vietnam always attach importance to the faithful friendship as well as the precious support and assistance from people of the former Soviet Union and today’s Russia.

He lauded the achievements obtained during the last 30 years since the signing of the Treaty on Principles of Friendly Relations between Vietnam and Russia (June 16, 1994 - 2024), and more than 10 years since the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership, ahead of the 75th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relationship (January 30, 1950 - 2025).

The bilateral relations have continued to be strengthened via high-level mutual visits, he noted.

At the talks, the two sides discussed and agreed on measures for bolstering and expanding cooperation to be on par with the traditional ties and the two countries’ comprehensive strategic partnership. They agreed to coordinate in organizing practical activities to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic relationship next year.

The chairmen concurred that the two legislative bodies will coordinate in supervising, promoting, and creating legal conditions for the executive bodies of Vietnam and Russia to work together to carry out bilateral cooperation activities in all spheres, cited VNA.

Regarding locality-to-locality connections, Man said relations between 20 pairs of Vietnamese and Russian localities have been set up, asking them to boost result-oriented and frequent exchanges.

He thanked the parliament and Government of Russia for creating conditions and ensuring security for the Vietnamese community to live, work, study, and integrate in the country, thus serving as a bridge of friendship and cooperation between the two nations' people.

The two countries should further enhance labor cooperation and people-to-people exchanges, the NA leader suggested, perceiving that they need to soon reach consensus on and sign agreements to attract Vietnamese workers to Russia, and provide more optimal conditions for travel and exchanges between their citizens.

The chairmen shared the view that among bilateral cooperation channels, inter-parliamentary cooperation is an extremely important pillar that has been developing unceasingly. The two sides have frequently consulted, coordinated, and supported each other at regional and international parliamentary forums.

Man emphasized that Vietnam attaches importance to the role of the State Duma along with its Chairman Volodin in fostering the bilateral ties, including cooperation between the two parliaments.

At present, the Inter-parliamentary Cooperation Committee between the Vietnamese NA and the State Duma of Russia is the first and highest cooperation mechanism of the Vietnamese NA with another country’s legislative body. The two sides successfully held two sessions. The third, taking place as part of this visit, aims to review and tackle obstacles to promote this collaboration more strongly to match the comprehensive strategic partnership in the new context.

Volodin suggested the two sides continue considering, expanding, and establishing new cooperation mechanisms to help further reinforce the two countries’ comprehensive strategic partnership.

Meanwhile, the top legislator of Vietnam held that they need to increase high-level mutual visits by parliamentary leaders; boost cooperation activities between agencies of the two parliaments, parliamentary friendship groups, young parliamentarians’ groups, female parliamentarians’ groups, and parliamentarians; and step up sharing legislation experience along with information about parliamentary activities of each country.

They should also coordinate more closely in supervising and promoting the implementation of the cooperation deals between the two governments, while building and perfecting favorable legal corridors for the governments, localities, businesses, and people of both countries, he added.

Mozambique President warmly welcomed in Hanoi on official visit

Vietnamese Party General Secretary and President To Lam and his spouse on September 9 hosted a welcoming ceremony for Mozambique President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi and his spouse, who arrived in Hanoi the previous day for a three-day official visit to Vietnam.

Shortly after the welcoming ceremony, the two leaders held talks to review the results of past cooperation between the two countries and proposed future cooperation directions. They also witnessed the signing of a number of cooperation agreements.

Vietnamese Party General Secretary and President To Lam and Mozambique President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi review the guard of honor at the welcoming ceremony in Hanoi on September 9.

This is Nyusi’ first visit to Vietnam after he took office in 2015. It is expected to open up new avenues for cooperation and further deepen the substantive relationship between the two countries, following the visit of Mozambican National Assembly President Esperanca Bias to Vietnam in June 2022 and the visit of Vietnamese Vice President Vo Thi Anh Xuan to Mozambique in September 2023.

Vietnam and Mozambique established diplomatic relations on June 25, 1975. Both countries have signed many cooperation agreements across various fields, including political diplomacy, economics, trade, investment, agriculture, fisheries, science and technology, telecommunications, health, education and training, culture, security and defense, finance, banking, and local cooperation, according to VOV.

They have established and maintained important cooperation mechanisms such as the Intergovernmental Committee and political consultations at the Deputy Foreign Minister level.

Economic, trade, and investment cooperation is a major pillar in bilateral relations. In 2023, their two-way trade reached US$546.4 million, including US$127 million worth of Vietnamese exports.

First woman of Vietnamese origin selected to fly into space

Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang has met Amanda Nguyen, the first woman of Vietnamese origin to fly into space.

At the September 5 meeting, Giang congratulated Amanda Nguyen on being selected to fly into space on a New Shepard Rocket of Blue Origin, a US aerospace manufacturer, in mid-2025, stressing this event will contribute to affirming the ability and promote the image of Vietnamese women.

The ambassador said Vietnamese women have always played an important role throughout Vietnam’s thousands of years of national construction and defense, as well as in its current development period, VNA reported.

Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang (left) meets with Amanda Nguyen, the first woman of Vietnamese origin to fly into space. (Photo: VNA)

The Vietnamese State has placed great importance on promoting gender equality, creating favorable conditions for women to carry forward their role, contribute to socio-economic development, and actively join international efforts in this regard, he said.

At the UN, Vietnam has actively participated and made many practical contributions to ensuring women's rights and gender equality, and the country will continue upholding its strengths in this field in the coming time, especially as it takes on the role of a member of UN Women for the 2025-2027 term, the ambassador said.

Giang urged Amanda Nguyen to play a more active role in enhancing the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and the US.

For her part, Amanda Nguyen expressed pride in Vietnam and the honor of soon becoming the first woman of Vietnamese origin to travel to space.

She hoped her upcoming spaceflight will help promote the image of Vietnamese women, connect the community, and advance cooperation to ensure gender equality and combat violence against and abuse of women.

Amanda Nguyen was born in 1991 in the US. In the summer of 2025, she will become the first Vietnamese-American woman to travel into space, as part of the Space for Humanity project.

She has been an active advocate against discrimination and sexual assault in the US. She was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019 and was named one of Time magazine's Women of the Year in 2022.

She received the 24th Annual Heinz Award for Public Policy and the Nelson Mandela Changemaker Award, made the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, and was recognised by Foreign Policy magazine as one of the top 100 global thinkers.

Vietnam attracts nearly US$21 billion in FDI in eight months

The total registered foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam reached nearly US$21 billion as of August 31, up 7 per cent over the same period last year.

According to the Foreign Investment Agency (FIA) under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, as of August 31, the total registered foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam reached over US$20.52 billion, representing a 7 per cent year-on-year increase.

The realized capital for FDI projects was estimated at US$14.15 billion, up 8 per cent.

Specifically, 2,247 new projects were granted investment registration certificates, with a total registered capital of nearly US$12 billion, an 8.5 per cent increase in the number of projects and a 27 per cent rise in capital year-on-year.

There were 926 projects registered for capital adjustments, a 4.9 per cent increase from the same period, with additional registered capital reaching more than US$5.7 billion, up 14.8 per cent.

"Foreign investment in Vietnam continues to follow a positive trend. Particularly, new investments and capital adjustments have increased in terms of the number of projects and the scale of investment capital," FIA remarked.

Regarding investment partners, 94 countries and territories invested in Vietnam during the first eight months of 2024, cited VNS.

Workers at Wooin Vina Co., Ltd. As of August 31, the total registered foreign direct investment in Việt Nam reached over US$20.52 billion. Photo: VNS

Singapore led with a total investment of over US$6.79 billion, accounting for nearly 33.1 per cent of total investment, an increase of 75.5 per cent compared to the same period in 2023.

Hong Kong (China) ranked second with US$2.4 billion, making up 11.7 per cent of total investment, up 43.7 per cent.

The largest investment partners during the eight months all came from Asia and are traditional partners of Vietnam. The top five countries and territories, including Singapore, Hong Kong (China), Japan, mainland China and South Korea, accounted for 74 per cent of new investment projects and 77.1 per cent of the country's total registered capital.

In terms of investment sectors, foreign investors have financed projects in 18 out of 21 national economic sectors. The processing and manufacturing industry led with a total investment of nearly US$14.17 billion, accounting for more than 69 per cent of total registered capital, up 7.4 per cent compared to the same period in 2023.

As for investment locations, FDI was registered in 54 provinces and cities across the country during the first eight months of 2024.

Bac Ninh led with a total registered capital of nearly US$3.47 billion, accounting for 16.9 per cent of the total capital, 2.94 times higher than the same period last year.

In the first eight months, 10 localities -- Bac Ninh, Quang Ninh, HCM City, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Hanoi, Hai Phong, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, Bac Giang and Thai Nguyên -- accounted for 80.7 per cent of new projects and 77.3 per cent of foreign investment capital.

As of August 31, Vietnam had 41,142 valid foreign investment projects with a total registered capital of US$491.39 billion. The accumulated realized capital of foreign investment projects was estimated at about US$311.33 billion, equivalent to 63.4 per cent of the total registered capital in effect.

Vietnam aims to be among top 30-35 economies worldwide

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has proposed positioning Vietnam among the top 30 to 35 largest economies in the world and within the group of high middle-income economies by 2030.

Chinh made the proposal during a meeting of the socio-economic subcommittee in preparation for the coming 14th National Party Congress, in Hanoi on September 9.

The meeting examined a draft report reviewing the implementation of the 2021-2030 Socio-Economic Development Strategy in the first five years (2021-2025), and outlining directions and tasks for socio-economic development in the 2026-2030 period.

According to the PM, who is also head of the subcommittee, the report should delve deeper into the achievements, considering the complex and challenging global context with many difficulties and evolving issues.

He emphasized the need to propose mechanisms and policies to mobilize social resources, particularly through public-private partnerships and both direct and indirect foreign resources.

He called for continued advancement in realizing three strategic breakthroughs (institutions, human resource development, infrastructure) and a deeper focus on the development of science and technology, innovation, and emerging sectors such as the green economy, digital economy, circular economy, knowledge economy, and sharing economy, as well as cultural industries.

The PM highlighted the importance of furthering institutional reform, especially in the socialist-oriented market economy, with the State playing a facilitating role and businesses being at the center, cited VOV.

He proposed including some important and breakthrough tasks, proposals, and projects in the draft report, including a project to train high-quality human resources for digital transformation, green transformation, circular economy, knowledge economy, and sharing economy; the development of the railway industry; green energy and clean energy industries; and a project to respond to climate change in the Mekong Delta.

Among other proposals are regional connectivity projects, particularly the North-South high-speed railway and railway lines connecting with China; projects for seaports and airports; nuclear energy development for peaceful purposes; digital infrastructure; and the development of international-level financial centers and commercial centers.

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