Hanoi (VNA) – The following is a list of selected news summaries reported last night by the Vietnam News Agency.

♕ - Party General Secretary To Lam reaffirmed that Vietnam always considers Russia one of its top priority partners in its foreign policy while receiving Russian Ambassador to Vietnam Gennady Bezdetko in Hanoi on April 2.

Vietnam wishes to maintain their good traditional relationship, thereby meeting the interests of both nations, and contributing to peace, cooperation, and development in the regions and the world, Lam stated. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired the second meeting of the National Steering Committee for building the private economic sector development project (Steering Committee) on April 2 to review the implementation of tasks, focusing on discussing and giving opinions on the project to submit to the Politburo.

The PM, who is also head of the Steering Committee, stated that the development of the private economic sector holds an important significance to the nation’s growth, especially in the new era. Read full story

- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met with Bill Winters, Chief Executive of Standard Chartered in Hanoi on April 2 evening, asking the group’s support for Vietnam in establishing international financial centres, obtaining green finance, and developing the private sector.

Expressing gratitude to Standard Chartered for its active role as the sole advisor to the Vietnamese Government since 2012 on improving the nation’s credit rating, the PM praised the bank for supporting Vietnamese ministries and agencies in implementing the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) in Vietnam, as well as for working with the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) to help the country achieve its sustainable development goals. Standard Chartered has signed cooperation agreements, providing over 8 billion USD in financing to Vietnamese businesses and partners. Read full story

- Chairman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Tran Thanh Man visited the TUMO Centre for Creative Technologies – a free-of-charge educational centre that helps young people in Armenia learn and enhance their skills by their own, during his official visit to the West Asian nation on April 2.

Man and the NA delegation were introduced to the centre, where training programmes are conducted through self-learning, workshops, and project experiments with 14 learning targets. Through a unique blend of exploration, self-study, practical workshops, and expert-led labs, young people develop practical skills in areas ranging from programming and robotics to music, graphic design, and others. Read full story

🧸 - King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, along with representatives of leading Belgian businesses, visited Quang Ninh on on April 2, showing the northern province continues to be a destination chosen by many investors from Belgium as well as the European Union (EU).

King Philippe said he is impressed by Quang Ninh’s socio-economic achievements, and recognised its great advantages and strong potential that provide cooperation opportunities for European nations, particularly Belgium. Read full story

🃏 - King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium and a high-level delegation from the European country engaged in a series of activities in the northern port city of Hai Phong on April 2, as part of their ongoing state visit to Vietnam.

Hosting the royal guests, Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Van Tung highlighted the flourishing friendship and cooperation between the city and the Belgian Embassy, as well as Belgian organisations and enterprises. He noted that the Dinh Vu Industrial Zone Joint Stock Company is the first and largest collaborative project between a consortium of Belgian companies and Hai Phong. This project has played a significant role in enhancing industrial infrastructure and attracting investment to the city, serving as a symbol of successful cooperation between Belgium and Vietnam, particularly with Hai Phong. Read full story

- Vice Chairman of the Quang Tri People’s Committee Hoang Nam on April 2 received US Ambassador Marc Evans Knapper, as part of the latter’s working visit to the north central province, one of the country’s most heavily war-impacted localities.

At the meeting, Nam expressed gratitude to the US government for its support for Vietnam in addressing war legacies, particularly through funding bomb and mine clearance programmes in Quang Tri. Read full story

- The Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia and the Vietnam-Cambodia Business Association (VCBA) jointly hosted a business dialogue on April 2, aiming to enhance Vietnamese business and investment activities in the Cambodian market.

The annual event attracted around 150 delegates, including Vietnamese businesses and Vietnamese-origin companies operating in Cambodia across various sectors such as finance, banking, insurance, telecommunications, agriculture, construction, interior design, food services, transportation, logistics, trade, healthcare, and tourism. Read full story

- Vietnam’s seafood exports staged a remarkable recovery in the first quarter, reaching a total value of 2.45 billion USD, up 26% year-on-year, according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

Shrimp and tra fish remained the key drivers of growth. By the end of Q1, shrimp exports totalled 931.6 million USD, a sharp increase of 35.7% compared to the same period last year. This surge was largely attributed to robust demand from major markets such as China, the US, and the EU. Meanwhile, tra fish exports contributed 465 million USD, an annual rise of 13%. Read full story

- The Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), in collaboration with the Cuban Embassy in Hanoi, and the Cuban Chamber of Commerce, held the Vietnam-Cuba Business Forum in Hanoi on April 2.

Addressing the event, Cuban Ambassador Rogelio Polanco Fuentes affirmed that Cuba will always stand alongside the Vietnamese Government and business community in their efforts to achieve the challenging target socio-economic goals. Read full story

- A national-level celebration and a military-civilian parade celebrating the 50th anniversary of the liberation of the South and national reunification (April 30, 1975 – 2025) will begin at 6:30 am on April 30 along Le Duan street and key city routes in Ho Chi Minh City.

According a master plan freshly issued by the municipal People's Committee, the events will be broadcast live on national and local television channels. Read full story

- A total of 4,755 traffic accidents occurred nationwide in the first quarter of this year, resulting in 2,598 deaths and 3,198 injuries, according to the Office of National Traffic Safety Committee.

Compared to the same period last year, the number of accidents, fatalities, and injuries declined by 27.8%, 1.9%, and 38.3%, respectively./. Read full story