HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — A court in Vietnam convicted 46 former bankers and businessmen of corruption on Monday over a multi-million-dollar lending scam spearheaded by the once-powerful chairman of Vietnam’s Construction Bank. It is the latest in a series of major banking trials aimed at cleaning up the opaque sector long plagued by bad debts, corruption and nepotism. Vietnam’s communist leaders have vowed to target the banking business as they wage a sweeping anti-graft […]
Tag: Vietnam
14 killed in Vietnam wedding party car crash
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) – Fourteen members of the same family were killed in a car crash in central Vietnam Monday en route to a wedding party, including the groom who died instantly when their van hit a container truck, police said. Road accidents are the leading cause of death in Vietnam, where traffic laws are loosely obeyed and road infrastructure is patchy. The victims of Monday’s car crash in Quang Nam were members of an […]
Pompeo preaches prosperity to North Korea, via Vietnam
by Dave Clark Agence France Presse HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — Washington’s top diplomat Mike Pompeo was addressing Vietnamese business leaders but his real audience was not in the Hanoi dining room. The US Secretary of State was sending a message from the thriving commercial heart of this once war-torn city all the way to North Korea. Vietnam fought a brutal war to expel American invaders, but now the former foes enjoy burgeoning trade ties and […]
15 dead in Vietnam flash floods, landslides
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — Flash floods and landslides killed 15 people in Vietnam’s mountainous north, officials said Tuesday, after storms ravaged homes and wiped out crops and infrastructure. At least 12 people are still missing after the weekend floods, and hundreds of police and soldiers have been deployed to help clean-up efforts. Vietnam is frequently lashed by harsh weather in the rainy season between June and November. The latest storm hit several northern provinces, littering […]
Arrival of NFA rice imports pushing lower rice prices, says Palace; unloading and distribution set
(Eagle News) – Some 250,000 metric tons of rice imported by the National Food Authority (NFA) have already arrived in the country which pushed the prices of commercial rice lower. Some of the rice prices became lower – at P36 and P38. “The Department of Agriculture, commercial rice is now at P36-P38 as a result of the arrival of the 250,000 metric tons of NFA rice from Subic,” Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said in a […]
China lands bombers on island in S. China Sea; island believed to be Woody Island claimed by Vietnam, Taiwan, too
BEIJING, China — China has for the first time landed several bombers on an island in the disputed South China Sea. Several bombers of various types — including the long-range, nuclear strike capable H-6K — carried out landing and take off drills at an unidentified island airfield after carrying out simulated strike training on targets at sea, the Chinese airforce said in a statement Friday. Wang Mingliang, a defense expert cited in the statement, said the takeoff and […]
Hanoi demands Beijing withdraw missiles from disputed islands
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — Hanoi has demanded Beijing remove military equipment from contested islands in the South China Sea, saying reported missile installations are a “serious violation” of Vietnam’s sovereignty. The warning follows a report from US network CNBC last week that China had installed anti-ship and air-to-air defenses on the Spratly Islands, which are also claimed by Vietnam. China did not confirm the new military equipment but last week affirmed its right to build […]
President Duterte holds bilateral meetings with Vietnam PM, Indonesian President
President Rodrigo Duterte on Friday, April 27, met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and Indonesian President Joko Widodo at the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Leaders’ Summit in Singapore. The President together with some of his Cabinet officials first met with Prime Minister Phuc at Ritz-Carlton Millenia Hotel. The Prime Minister congratulated Duterte for the successful Philippine ASEAN chairmanship, stating that its outputs were good foundations for more […]
Roque: Duterte reiterated he was not “abandoning” arbitral tribunal decision on S. China Sea in meeting with Vietnamese PM
(Eagle News) — President Rodrigo Duterte reiterated the Philippines was “not abandoning, not ignoring, not setting aside” the arbitral tribunal decision that favored it over China in the South China Sea dispute. According to Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, the move was done by the President in a bilateral meeting with Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the sidelines of the 32nd Association of Southeast Asian Summit in Singapore. “He will deal with the arbitral […]
Vietnam eyes cryptocurrency crackdown after alleged $660 million scam
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — Vietnam has vowed to tighten regulations on cryptocurrencies as authorities investigate an alleged multi-million-dollar fraud in the country, where digital units are traded in a shadowy and unregulated market. Paying with cryptocurrencies is illegal in Vietnam, where they are not recognized as a legitimate tender by the central bank. However, there are currently no laws explicitly banning the possession of assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. Regulators have battled to gain […]
Beijing, Hanoi promise to keep peace in South China Sea
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — China and Vietnam vowed Sunday to keep the peace in the South China Sea, the resource-rich waterway that has long been a source of tension between Hanoi and its powerhouse communist neighbour. China claims most of the disputed sea, which is believed to be rich in oil and gas reserves and is highly strategic for trade and defence. Beijing has built up artificial islands capable of hosting military installations in recent […]
US gives boats to Vietnam amid South China Sea tensions
HANOI, Vietnam (AFP) — The US delivered six patrol boats and equipment worth a combined $20 million to Vietnam, the US embassy in Hanoi said Thursday, as the former foes boost ties amid continuing tensions in the South China Sea. Hanoi and Washington have improved defense links in recent years as they seek to counter Beijing’s growing might in the disputed and resource-rich waterway. The US Coast Guard gave its Vietnamese counterpart six fast-response Metal […]





