VIETNAM TODAY

Police in HCM City rescued a 3-year-old girl from her maid on October 2 after she being kidnapped and held for VND100 million in ransom.

According to the Vietnam Astronomy Association– a total lunar eclipse will occur on October 8 and the entire event will be visible in Vietnam.

A fishing boat sank after a gas container exploded, killing one, injuring two and leaving two missing in the central province of Quang Ngai.

The Vietnam U19 football squad is just about to depart for Myanmar to compete in the 2014 U19 Asian Football Championship (AFC) taking place from October 9 to 23.

US State Secretary John Kerry announced that the US was partially lifting its ban on the sale of lethal arms to Vietnam during talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Washington on October 2.

In the nine months leading up to October there were 18,697 traffic accidents throughout the country resulting in 6,758 deaths and 17,835 serious injuries, according to the National Traffic Safety Committee (NTSC).

Vietnam has seen a large increase in beer production over the past decade, and among the 25 biggest beer producers worldwide in 2013.

All acts undertaken by other parties in Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagoes without Vietnam’s permission are illegal, null and void, stated the Spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The new regulation on assessment for primary school students is expected to be a breakthrough for Vietnam’s education system, one official has said.

Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) on October 2 issued a Joint Statement during the visit to the RoK by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong from October 1-4.

Monk Thich Thanh Cuong in Hai Duong Province has been dismissed from his position after posting photos of himself in luxury settings.

The fifth East Seas Congress will take place in the central city of Danang from Nov.17-21, announced the city People’s Committee on Oct. 1.

The Asia-Europe New Music Festival 2014 is scheduled to take place from Oct. 8-12 in Hanoi and Ha Long city for the first time with the participation of 200 local and international composers and artists from 30 countries and territories.

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has affirmed Vietnam's willingness to offer favourable conditions for foreign investors, including those from the Republic of Korea (RoK), to run their smooth operations in Vietnam.

A top Chinese envoy warned that drawn-out pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong could tarnish the city's reputation as one of the world's leading financial hubs, as defiant protesters vowed on Thursday they would not budge.

Nguyen Hoang Ngan, the Vietnamese queen of kata (performance), earned a silver medal at the 17th Asian Games (ASIAD 17) in Incheon, the Republic of Korea, on October 2.

Despite the economic slowdown, many Vietnamese continue to travel to destinations in the US and Europe, and this trend is on the rise.

A crash between a coach and a motorbike on a national highway in Dak Lak caused two deaths and 11 injuries on October 1.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) recently announced that labour productivity in Vietnam is among the lowest in the Asia – Pacific region.