VIETNAM TODAY

Al-Qaida and Afghan Taliban fighters asked Pakistani militants to set aside their differences and step up support for the battle against U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.

After significant export growth of 33.3 percent in 2011, Vietnam is expected this year to attain further growth for its major products.

Around 4,500 boats will serve visitors coming to the Huong Pagoda Festival in Hanoi's outlying district of My Duc this year, said the organisation committee.

The Ho Chi Minh City-based C.T Group awarded two chief executive officers with a house worth VND8 billion and VND200 million in cash each as Tet bonus.

South Korea's President Lee Myung-Bak said the divided peninsula is at a turning point after the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il, with opportunities to improve relations.

A boy who rescued his friends, a pregnant railway worker who rescued a baby, a rubbish collector who gave back $2,000 are good examples in 2011.

Serena Williams has fallen out of love with tennis despite recording an impressive comeback win over Chanelle Scheepers in the first round of the Brisbane International.

In the five years since Vietnam’s accession to the World Trade Organisation, the country has reaped a bumper harvest.

Fewer than 50 wild tigers have recently been found in Vietnam, compared to 100 more than ten years ago, said an official.

Russia’s aircraft manufacturers have handed over four more Sukhoi SU-30 fighter jets to Vietnam after the delivery of the first four in June.

The second of two NASA lunar probes on a mission to study the Moon's inner core went into orbit as planned, the US space agency said.

Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has approved a strategy for developing Vietnamese youths from now until 2020.

Tom Cruise's "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" topped the North American box office with $30 million in ticket sales, industry estimates showed.

Thong Nhat Metropole Hotel Joint Venture Ltd. Co. has been fined USD23,800 for violations in foreign currency transactions.

For years, the story told about the Amazon has been one of destruction. But that is no longer the whole truth.

A total of VND6.6 trillion was donated by localities, organisations and individuals for the poor at a live TV programme held on the eve of the year 2012.

The Da Lat Flower Festival 2012, the fourth of its kinds, opened in Da Lat, the Central Highlands Lam Dong province on December 31.

Vietnam joined other countries around the globe in welcoming the New Year with parties, art performances, and fireworks, with expectations for all things to be better in 2012.

The HCM City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism held a ceremony on January 1, 2012 to welcome the first international visitors to the city in the New Year.