VIETNAM TODAY

The Prime Minister has approved targets for the National Programme for Rural Water Supplies and Sanitation during the 2012-15 period.

North Korea is counting down to the 100th anniversary of its founder's birth, with top-level meetings and a controversial rocket launch scheduled in coming days to bolster his grandson's credentials.

The Government should set up a fund that could take over the bad debts of bankrupted enterprises, an economist said.

Four men who stole petrol and batteries from lorries parked near a cement plant in Quang Binh Province were prosecuted.

Mike Wallace, the legendary CBS News broadcaster, interviewer and "60 Minutes" icon, has died at the age of 93, the network said.

Thousands of people gathered in the Truc Lam-Tay Thien Zen Monastery for the inauguration of the world's biggest Buddha statue made from sapphire in Tam Dao District, Vinh Phuc Province.

The Government is attempting to create a legal system to deal with the problem of importing toxic waste from other countries.

Vietnam always gives top priority to strengthening the traditional friendship and considers the ties as an invaluable asset that should be preserved for future generations, PM Dung said.

Electricity of Vietnam group (EVN) is expecting to bring many power stations nationwide online within April.

Vietnam has recorded a much higher number of complaints to legislative agencies after the Haiphong land use dispute.

Mary McBride, a famous US band, and Vietnamese singer Le Cat Trong Ly had a night show on April 9, 2012 at Hue Central Hospital as part of the 2012 Hue Festival.

A gas explosion occurred at a boarding house in Binh Duong province, killing one and leaving 17 others with serious burns.

Syria demanded guarantees that armed groups cease fire before withdrawing its troops from protest hubs as agreed with special envoy Kofi Annan.

A recent survey of ASEAN Business Advisory Council (ABAC) has shown that regional investors rank Vietnam as the second most attractive destination in the region.

A large bomb exploded near a church in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna as Easter Sunday services were being held, killing at least 20 people, a rescue official said.

Ho Chi Minh had been patient and diplomatic. Now the time had come to take off the velvet glove and reveal the iron fist, writes Laura Lam in the 22nd part of her series.

Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong left Hanoi on April 8 to start his official visits to Cuba and Brazil.

Vietnam considers the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as the foundation for a global nuclear non-proliferation mechanism, said a senior Vietnamese diplomat.

Up to 135 people, mostly soldiers, were feared dead Sunday after an avalanche buried a Pakistan army camp in mountainous Kashmir, in an area known as the world's highest battleground.