The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain (DDG 56) transits through South China Sea while conducting routine underway operations, February 5, 2021. — Photo from the US Department of Defense HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam is a responsible member of the international community and always upholds provisions under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS 1982), spokesperson for the foreign ministry Lê Thị Thu Hằng said. She made the statement on Thursday in the regular press briefing, held virtually this time due to COVID-19 in Hà Nội, when asked for Việt Nam’s reaction to the US Navy’s first freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) held under the Biden administration in February. The guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain reportedly conducted the FONOP near the Trường Sa (Spratly) and Hoàng Sa (Paracel) archipelagoes in the South China Sea (known as the East Sea by Việt Nam) over which Việt Nam has repeatedly claimed sovereignty, but contested by mainland China and China’s Taiwan. “By engaging in innocent passage without giving prior notification to or asking permission from any of the claimants,” the US Navy noted in a statement. Also regarding the recent statement by French Minister of Armed Forces Florence Parly that France had sent the nuclear submarine, SNA Emeraude, to patrol the South China Sea, together with the naval support ship BSAM Seine, the said spokesperson said: “As a responsible member of the international community and a signatory of the UNCLOS 1982, Việt Nam always upholds the provisions of the UNCLOS, including items related to maritime and flight activities over the sea regions set up in accordance with UNCLOS 1982.” “The maintenance of peace, stability, security and order, safety, maritime and overflight freedom, the rule of law, with respect to sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction of the littoral countries in the South China Sea, in a manner that is consistent with the UNCLOS 1982, is …
Community support
Việt Nam is ready support Vietnamese citizens affected by storms in US: Foreign Ministry
Spokesperson for the foreign affairs ministry Lê Thị Thu Hằng . Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs HÀ NỘI — Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs say they are ready to support around 300,000 Vietnamese people living in Texas who have been affected by adverse weather conditions as blizzards continue to cause damage and destruction in the US. Four Vietnamese-Americans in one family perished after a fire in their home. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has contacted the Vietnamese Consulate General in Houston (Texas) and the Vietnamese diplomatic missions in the US and was told that the last blizzard affected more than 29 million people in Texas, including about 300,000 Vietnamese and Vietnamese people who are living and working there. Spokes person for the ministry Lê Thị Thu Hằng was responding to reporters’ inquiries on providing information on the damage (if any) of the Vietnamese in Texas following the storms. According to Hằng, most of these people were severely affected by the winter storm. They suffered cuts to the power and water supply and had difficulty accessing essential goods. She also quoted official information from the local government that four people in a Vietnamese-American family died in a blaze caused by using fire to keep warm. Vietnam Consulate General in Houston has contacted Việt Kiều (Overseas Vietnamese) and students to understand their situations, visit and also offer donations as well as financial support. Under the direction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Consulate General of Việt Nam and the Vietnamese diplomatic missions in the US are continuing to monitor the situation and are on duty around the clock to coordinate with the host authorities and implementing necessary citizen protection measures. If people need assistance or have information about the affected person, they can contact the Vietnam Embassy Citizen Protection hotline in the United States: + 1-202-716-8666 or email …
Vietnamese brands thirsty for support policies
The Hanoitimes - Many Vietnamese enterprises do not truly understand the significance of brands or see them as a long-term investment. While Vietnam is beefing up global integration, brand building is a key step to help Vietnamese products compete with their foreign peers. However, there is still a lack of efforts from both enterprises and local authorities in the process of developing and managing brands for local products. Local enterprises introduce products to customers at an international trade fair in Hanoi. Photo: Cong Hung In 2019, the Vietnam brand was valued at US$247 billion, up 5.4% year-on-year, ranking 42nd among the 100 most valuable nation brands, according to Brand Finance. Despite such improvements, many Vietnamese brands have not been heard of by local and international customers. A survey of over 500 enterprises conducted by the Ministry of Industry and Trade revealed brand recognition among customers is still low, as only 20% of the number of enterprises are focusing on brand building and registering their brands in Vietnam. As such, the majority have not considered registering brands in the international market or pay attention to the process of brand management and utilization. Le Tat Chien, deputy director of the Intellectual Property Training and Consultation Center under the Ministry of Science and Technology, said enterprises’ lack of attention to promoting brands abroad is a major issue that restricts their efforts to penetrate foreign markets. Sharing the same view, Deputy Head of the Party Central Committee’s Economic Commission Nguyen Huu Nghia expressed concern that several enterprises are ignoring the necessity of building and managing brands, or they are not taking into account the importance of brands as an instrument in gaining market shares. Vietnamese enterprises do not often advertise their brands on the media or just do it occasionally, so it is not sufficient to leave a deep impression on …
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