Vietnam News Today (Dec. 15): Northerners to Feel Biting Cold This Weekend

Illustrative image. Photo: VNA

Vietnam logs 320 new Covid-19 cases on December 14

Vietnam recorded an additional 320 Covid-19 cases on December 14, according to the Ministry of Health.

The country has so far reported 11,521,708 Covid-19 infections since the pandemic broke out, cited VNA.

Also on the same day, 129 patients were declared to be free from the disease, lifting the total number of recoveries to 10,609,912.

The death toll was still kept at 43,179, accounting for 0.4% of the total infections, as no fatality was logged on the day.

More than 264.99 million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered in the country to date.

Vietnamese PM attends EU-ASEAN commemorative summit in Brussels

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh of Vietnam on December 14 attended a summit in Brussels, Belgium, to mark 45 years of the dialogue partnership between the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

This is the first time that ASEAN and the EU have jointly organized the commemorative summit in Belgium, with the participation of senior leaders of ASEAN and EU member states, since they both established their dialogue partnership in 1977 and strategic partnership in 2020.

After 45 years, the ASEAN-EU relations have developed dynamically, covering various fields, from politics-security and economy-trade to culture, social affairs and development cooperation.

European Council President Charles Michel (first from left) and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen (first from right)) welcome Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh to the ASEAN-EU commemorative summit. Photo: VGP

The two sides are currently coordinating to implement an action plan to realize their strategic partnership for 2023-2027.

The EU maintains ASEAN holds a central position in the EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific announced in 2021, and it looks forward to promoting in-depth cooperation with ASEAN, according to VOV.

The EU is one of ASEAN’s leading trade and development cooperation partners. According to ASEAN data, the EU was ASEAN’s third largest trading partner last year after China and the US, with the two-way trade turnover reaching US$268.9 billion, up 18.6% year on year. It was also ASEAN’s second largest foreign investor after the US, with a total investment capital of US$26.5 billion.

Meanwhile, Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Commission, reported ASEAN was the EU’s third largest non-European trading partner in 2021 after China and the US.

During the summit in Brussels, leaders of the two sides are expected to review the ASEAN – EU partnership over the past 45 years and set out important orientations for their development in the future. At the same time they will spend time discussing regional and international issues of mutual concern.

They are set to adopt a joint statement of the summit.

Vietnam wants to further develop strategic partnership with Indonesia: NA leader

Permanent Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Tran Thanh Man has affirmed that Vietnam wants to strengthen and further develop its strategic partnership with Indonesia towards the 10th founding anniversary of the strategic partnership next year, VNA reported.

During a reception in Hanoi on December 14 for Chairman of the Committee for Inter-Parliamentary Cooperation under the Indonesian People’s Representative Council Fadli Zon, Man lauded the two legislatures for resuming the direct exchange of delegations after the Covid-19 pandemic, saying parliamentary cooperation will contribute to the bilateral strategic partnership.

He also expressed his belief that Indonesia will successfully assume its role as ASEAN Chair and Chair of the 44th General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA-44) in 2023, accomplish the Indonesia Vision 2045, and become a developed nation by 2045 when it celebrates 100 years of independence.

Man suggested the two sides continue working closely together to lift their strategic partnership to a new height in the near future, especially boosting parliamentary cooperation to be on a par with the strategic partnership.

Specifically, both sides should direct their ministries and agencies to carry out the 2019-2023 Action Plan for the strategic partnership and build the 2024-2028 Action Plan, and discuss measures to step up their strategic partnership for recovery and development following the pandemic.

Illustrative image. Photo: Internet

The exchange of all-level visits should be facilitated while specific measures should be taken to boost balanced two-way trade, he said.

Speaking highly of the close ties between the two countries at multilateral organizations and forums, particularly the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the United Nations, Man affirmed that the Vietnamese NA will support and work with the Indonesian Parliament to successfully hold AIPA-44.

Zon, for his part, agreed with the host’s proposal to foster friendship and cooperation between the two countries in a more effective and practical manner.

He said Indonesian agencies and the Indonesian Embassy in Vietnam are preparing for visits to Indonesia by Vietnamese leaders, adding that the two legislatures need to further oversee and promote links in various areas.

Northerners to feel biting cold this weekend

A strong cold air front is moving toward Vietnam from the north and it is forecast to cause temperatures to fall sharply to below 10 degree Celsius when it reaches the northern border this weekend.

Northerners will feel bitter chill this weekend when a strong cold spell is to hit the north as of December 16 afternoon.

The cold spell is anticipated to hit the northern mountainous localities on December 16 afternoon and then spread throughout the northern and north-central regions, according to the National Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecasting.

The strong cold air wave will cause temperatures to drop sharply to between 3 – 5 degrees Celsius in the highlands and between 8 – 11 degrees Celsius in the midland and plain.

The temperature in some mountainous places is even forecast to fall to a low of zero degree Celsius, cited VOV.

Weather experts also warned heavy rain would beat the central region from Ha Tinh to Khanh Hoa provinces from December 16 to 18.

ADB projects Vietnam to grow 7.5% in 2022

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has revised up its economic growth forecast for Vietnam to 7.5% this year, from 6.5% as projected in September, given regional and global gloom.

In its freshly released Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2022, the ADB said has also revised the Vietnamese inflation forecast down to 3.5% from 3.8% in September.

ADB experts noted that while the local economy is currently performing well amid global uncertainties, risks to the country’s economic outlook have increased.

Illustrative image. Photo: VNA

The Bank said although local trade continues to expand, there are indicators of weakening global demand for the nation’s exports. Moving forward, growth for 2023 has therefore been adjusted down to 6.3% as major trade partners weaken.

The Bank also lowered its economic growth forecasts for developing Asia and the Pacific amid an increasingly negative global outlook, VNA reported.

Accordingly, the regional economy is set to grow by 4.2% in 2022 and 4.6% in 2023, slightly down from the September respective forecasts of 4.3% and 4.9%.