Austin new years party

The Hanoitimes - Submitting three diplomatic notes to the UN within 10 days is considered Hanoi's strong move. Related parties in the South China Sea must comply with international law, especially the United Nations Convention of the Law on the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has stated as China stirred tensions in disputed waters. Spokesperson of the Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang. Photo: MOFA The compliance with international law shows the commitment to advancement of the friendship among countries for peace, stability, and cooperation in the South China Sea, region and the world, the MOFA's Spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang has said. Vietnam sincerely wishes that the nations’ legitimate rights are in line with UNCLOS, Hang said on April 21 in response to reporters' question on recent developments in waters of several ASEAN countries in the South China Sea, which is known as the East Sea in Vietnam. Local media reported that Vietnam has made significant moves. On April 10, the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to the United Nations submitted two diplomatic notes namely 24/HC-2020 and 25/HC-2020 to the United Nations’ Secretary-General António Guterres to show Hanoi’s stance on its sovereignty on the South China Sea and affirm Vietnam’s obvious rights in the sea. On March 30, Vietnam submitted diplomatic note 22/HC-2020 to protest China for rejecting the diplomatic notes by both Malaysia and the Philippines. China’s survey ship Haiyang Dizhi 8 entered waters near Malaysia on April 16 and was close to an exploration vessel operated by Malaysia’s state oil company Petronas in disputed waters in the South China Sea, according to Reuters. Haiyang Dizhi 8 intruded Vietnamese waters during three months last year, causing a stand-off between Vietnam and China. …

[Read more...] about Related parties in South China Sea must abide by int’l law, Hanoi says

TOKYO -- When a huge earthquake and tsunami struck Japan on March 11, 2011, devastating towns and triggering nuclear meltdowns in Fukushima, a stunned world watched the chaotic struggle to contain the world’s worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl. An onslaught of waves sparked by the 9.0-magnitude quake crashed into the northeastern coast, killing nearly 20,000 people and crippling the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant. More than 160,000 residents fled as radiation spewed into the air. At the time, some - including Prime Minister Naoto Kan - feared Tokyo would need to be evacuated, or worse. “Fukushima is stamped for the rest of the history of nuclear energy,” said Kiyoshi Kurokawa, head of an investigation that concluded the disaster was “profoundly man-made”. The government has spent about $300 billion (32.1 trillion yen) to rebuild the tsunami-devastated Tohoku region, but areas around the Fukushima plant remain off-limits, worries about radiation levels linger and many who left have settled elsewhere. Decommissioning of the crippled plant will take decades and billions of dollars. Japan is again debating the role of nuclear power in its energy mix as the resource-poor country aims to achieve net carbon neutrality by 2050 to fight global warming. But an NHK public TV survey showed 85% of the public worries about nuclear accidents. Energy policy was left in limbo after Shinzo Abe led his pro-nuclear energy Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) back to power the year after the disaster, ousting the novice Democratic Party of Japan, whose image was tainted by its handling of Fukushima. “They sort of left things adrift,” said Tobias Harris, senior vice president at consultancy Teneo and author of a book about Abe. 'Result of collusion' Kurokawa’s commission, appointed by parliament, concluded in 2012 that the Fukushima accident was “the result of collusion between the government, regulators and Tokyo Electric Power Co” and a lack of governance. Abe …

[Read more...] about Ten years after Fukushima, Japan remembers ‘man-made’ nuclear disaster

On Hon Tre island, Kien Hai district, Kien Giang province (Photo: VNA) hập mô tả cho ảnh Kien Giang (VNA) - The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang aims to have all of its 116 communes fulfil the criteria in the national target programme on building new-style rural areas in the 2021-25 period, with funding estimated at some 17.4 trillion VND (751.47 million USD). In 2021 alone, nine communes strive to win recognition, while the districts of Vinh Thuan and Kien Luong as well as Ha Tien city are to accomplish the task of building new-style rural areas. Local authorities also strive to fulfil targets on the rate of households with access to clean water of 99 percent and health insurance coverage of over 90 percent, and the reduction of the multidimensional poverty household rate of 1 percent while creating 35,000 jobs. The province will bolster the transfer and application of modern technologies in agricultural production and consider models for large-scale agricultural production, supply chains, environmental protection, climate change adaptation, and agricultural cooperatives. Due regard will be paid to the “ One Commune , One Product” (OCOP) programme, as Kien Giang aims to have up to 50 products of at least three-stars. Some 64 billion VND will be allocated for the implementation of the programme. In the centre of Rach Gia city, Kien Giang province (Photo: VNA) Kien Giang earmarked over 732 billion VND last year for building new-style rural areas , in particular infrastructure investment. More than 6,365 km of rural roads were cemented and irrigation networks improved. The rate of poor households came down to 1.69 percent. As of the end of January 2021, 81 communes in Kien Giang had been recognised as new-style rural areas. Eleven districts and cities had half of their localities complete necessary tasks./. VNA …

[Read more...] about Kien Giang sets aside over 750 million USD for building new-style rural areas