VIETNAM TODAY

44 people were killed and 8 were seriously injured when a Russian passenger plane crashed onto a motorway, officials said.

The number of representative offices of foreign travel firms in HCM City has fallen to seven from 11 last year due to restrictions.

The Vietnam Red Cross on June 20 handed over of an aid donation worth roughly USD7.78 million for victims of natural disasters in Japan.

The US's defense secretary confirmed that the US was involved in preliminary talks with Taliban to seek a political solution to the Afghan war.

Many educators doubt the credibility of the impressive results of the national high school graduation exam released recently.

Thousands of people living in the resettlement area of a hydropower plant in Nghe An Province are desperate for clean water.

Vietnamese documentaries, considered to be a strong point in the country's cinematography industry, have not advanced as well as expected.

Over 20 percent of Vietnamese population or 18 million people are suffering from hepatitis B and C, said an expert.

Vietnamese movie fans are in for a treat this year as filmmakers continue to explore various genres.

Europe promised to unblock existing bailout loans for Greece and draw up a second financial rescue as long as its parliament approves fierce new budget cuts and a raft of asset sales.  

Singapore on Monday urged China to be more open about the extent of its territorial claims in the South China Sea.

Several Vietnamese coffee shops in San Jose serve iced coffee by waitresses wearing little or nothing at all.

Vietnam Airlines will open a direct air route to the UK on December 8.

Australian Nick D'Arcy handed Michael Phelps another 200m butterfly defeat, edging the world record-holder at the Santa Clara Grand Prix.

Vietnamese banks are considering M&A as the last resort for their survival amid increasing bad debt.

The Ministry of National Defence last Friday began work on clearing unexploded ordnance from Danang Airport, an Agent Orange hotspot.

The World Chess Federation (FIDE) will help develop chess in HCM City and Binh Duong Province, said the FIDE president.

Schemes to convert croplands or marginal lands to forests will make almost no inroads against global warming this century, a scientific study said.

Hanoi authorities have licensed the West Lake Co., Ltd to pilot tramcar project in the West Lake.