National flag of Vietnam and SEA Games 31 fly at a stadium. The accused are Nguyen Thi Tuong Vi, Director of ATA Vietnam Consulting and Investment Co. Ltd., and Nguyen Thi Dung Hanh, Director of G Vietnam 19 Co. Ltd. He was previously chosen as flag bearer at the opening ceremony of SEA Games 29 in Malaysia in 2017 and SEA Games 30 in the Philippines in 2019. Vovinam to be performed at SEA Games 31’s opening ceremonyVovinam is the only martial art chosen to be performed at the opening ceremony of the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) on May 12, according to the Organising Committee of SEA Games 31. At the 22nd SEA Games, Minh was only 20 years old and a greenhorn in the sport.

Vietnamese fencers are promoting training with the aim of obtaining three gold medals. (Photo: VNA)– Vietnamese fencers are promoting training with the aim of obtaining three gold medals at the coming 31st Southeast Asian Games ( SEA Games 31 ), according to the Organising Committee Over the past years, Vietnam has continually been among the best fencing teams in Southeast Asia.Vietnamese fencers pocketed eight of the 12 gold medals at the 28th SEA Games , held in Singapore in 2015. Twenty-four of them have been selected for competing in all the 12 categories at the Games, comprising six team and six individual categories.Coach Phan Anh Tuan said among the outstanding athletes, Vu Thanh An remains No. 2 in the region, and with his performance and constant training, An will still be able to advance to SEA Games finals even in the next three years. Young potential athletes who can succeed him include Xuan Loi, Duc Anh, and Van Quyet.Meanwhile, the key female fencers at this time’s Games are Nguyen Phuong Kim, Vu Thi Hong, and Nguyen Thi Trang, Tuan added.Fencing events with 12 sets of medals will take place at the Hanoi Indoor Games Gymnasium from May 13 to 18./.

Vietnam expects to add 9,600 MW of power from biomass by 2030. (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam expects to add 9,600 MW of power from biomass by 2030, but that will need added incentives. Pham Huong Giang, an official of the Electricity and Renewable Energy Authority under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, pointed out the low rate of biomass power contributions to the national power grid. Huge investment capital and unattractive price mechanisms have also remained major obstacles, he said. According to the National Power Development Plan for the 2021 - 2030 period, with a vision towards 2045 (PDP VIII), the installed capacity of biomass power in Vietnam will reach 1,730MW by 2030.

Taking into account the latest deployment, Vietnam’s military has sent a total of 76 officers on individual duties, and 436 soldiers in groups on UN peacekeeping missions. (Photo: VNA)The first group of Vietnam's Engineering Unit Rotation 1 arrived at the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) on May 5, according to the Vietnam Department of Peacekeeping Operations.The 28-member group was led by Colonel Mac Duc Trong, deputy head of the department, head of the Engineering Unit Rotation 1 and commander of the Vietnamese peacekeeping force at UNISFA.The officers and soldiers left for the UN peacekeeping mission on May 3. They have been assigned to take over barracks in the mission and equipment transported from Vietnam via the sea route, and make preparations to welcome the official unit of 156 people, to be deployed in mid-May.This is the first time Vietnam has sent military engineers to join UN peacekeeping operations. It is the unit-level formation with the largest number of members ever participating in UN peacekeeping missions.The staff members of the Engineering Unit Rotation 1, which debuted on November 17, 2011, will help provide humanitarian assistance and support the UN delegations in keeping and re-establishing peace in the area.They will also ensure transport, perform road maintenance, help reconstruct the UN base, and provide support for the local community by building community houses, schools, and other public facilities.Taking into account the latest deployment, Vietnam’s military has sent a total of 76 officers on individual duties, and 436 soldiers in groups on UN peacekeeping missions./.

The self-filled declaration form contains basic personal information, travel history over the past 14 days, potential exposure to people with suspected COVID-19 symptoms and COVID-19 vaccination status. The temporary abolishment of this requirement is the latest move in Vietnam’s attempt to live with the virus. According to the health ministry, COVID-19 has been put well under control across the country, with caseload and fatalities down significantly – the average number of deaths reported daily has stayed below 10 for several weeks now, while 96 per cent of the population aged 12 and older have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, with the inoculation of children aged five to 11 underway. It is noted that the current COVID-19 vaccines are still effective against known strains of coronavirus./.

Forward Nguyen Tien Linh celebrates his goal. In the last 13 encounters at SEA Games, Vietnam won six, draw two and lost five against Indonesia. The previous SEA Games in 2019 in the Philippines saw Vietnam beating Indonesia 3-0 in the final to win the gold medal. During the game (Photo: VNA)In this SEA Games, Vietnam and Indonesia were put in group A together with Myanmar, the Philippines and Timor Leste. Four minutes later, Nguyen Tien Linh was closed to scoring a double after the ball found him from a corner, but he missed the shot.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam is stepping up surveillance and patrols to ensure security at airports for the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31). SEA Games 31: flag-hoisting ceremony slated for May 11The flag-hoisting ceremony of the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) will take place at My Dinh National Sports Complex in Hanoi on May 11. Finswimming was included in SEA Games 22 in Vietnam for the first time. At SEA Games 25 in 2009 in Laos, and SEA Games 26 in 2011 in Indonesia, Vietnam brought home four and six gold medals, respectively, breaking many Southeast Asian records. It has also mobilised 300 volunteers who are students of the Ha Long University to support SEA Games 31 works.

The footballers of the Philippines. (Photo: VNA)The Philippines defeated Timor Leste 4-0 in the first match of Group A in the men’s football at SEA Games 31 in northern Phu Tho province on May 6.Thousands of spectators attended the match at Viet Tri Stadium, which is set to host 10 games, including those of the hosts Vietnam, from May 6-21.Defender Christian Rontini gave the Philippines the lead in the 21st minute.The Philippines were then able to capitalise on errors by the Timor Leste defensive line to secure a 4-0 victory.On May 8, Timor Leste will face Myanmar, while the Philippines will play Vietnam.SEA Games 31, themed “For a Stronger South East Asia”, will be held in the capital city of Hanoi and 11 neighbouring provinces and cities from May 12 to 23.Featuring 40 sports with 526 events, it is expected to attract around 10,000 participants. The biennial event was initially slated for late 2021, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic./.

World Laos to develop expressway linking Houaphanh with Vietnam The Government of Laos has agreed with contractors to conduct a feasibility study for the construction of an expressway from Houaphanh province to the border with Vietnam under an agreement signed recently, Vientiane Times reported. World Thailand to host APEC trade ministers’ meeting this month Thailand will host a meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)’s Ministers Responsible for Trade (MRT) from May 19 to 22 to push for the digital economy and post-pandemic economic revival among several goals, a senior Thai Commerce Ministry official said on May 5. World Cambodia to host consultative meeting on ASEAN humanitarian aid to Myanmar on May 6 Cambodia, the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for 2022, will host a consultative meeting on ASEAN humanitarian assistance to Myanmar on May 6 in a hybrid format, according to a press statement by the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. World SEA Games 31: Thailand's U23 team pins hope on Coach Alexandre Polking Head coach of the Thai national football team Alexandre Polking has been appointed to guide the country’s U23 squad for the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) hosted by Vietnam.

The South China Morning posted an outstanding headline: “Vietnam hopes to take tourism to new heights with world’s longest glass bridge”. The France’s AFP said “if you have an acrophobia, this latest tourism hotspot in Vietnam is definitely not for you”. The German Press Agency, meanwhile, quoted an expert from the World Guinness Records as saying that “the bridge can withstand the weight of at least 500 people walking across it”. Numerous foreign fans have shown their interest and said they cannot wait to touch their bare feet on the glass bridge. The relative height between the bridge deck and the ground is about 150 meters./.

Illustrative image (Photo: VNA)Germany’s newspaper Finanzmarktwel t has run an article on Vietnam’s full reopening post the COVID-19 pandemic, with rosy signs seen in all sectors.According to the article, Vietnam faced a range of difficulties in the fight against the pandemic last year due to the spread of the Delta variant . However, the Southeast Asian nation has fully opened and shifted to living safely with the pandemic despite Omicron waves this year.The country’s export-import value hit a record 67.37 billion USD in March, of which 34.71 billion USD came from exports, surpassing the previous record in July 2021.The article cited a forecast by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) as saying that Vietnam’s economy will expand about 6.5 percent this year.It also highlighted Vietnam’s export of electronic products, especially mobile phones, garments-textiles and timber products.Tim Lee Lahaphan, an economist from Standard Chartered Bank, said more and more foreign firms have planned to move their supply chains to Vietnam that is dubbed as a centre of electronics, garments-textile and footwear in the region, the article noted.Apart from production and trade, the domestic tourism is also bouncing back, the article said, adding that since mid-March, Vietnam announced its complete resumption of tourism activities.Tourism has significantly contributed to Vietnam’s economy, making up 9.2 percent of the national gross domestic product (GDP) last year, the article said./.

At the launch, VNA General Director Vu Viet Trang said VNA has started an information drive on the regional sporting event early. According to her, the national news agency has signed a communication cooperation agreement with the Information-Communication Sub-Committee of the SEA Games 31 Organising Committee. The SEA Games 31 website of VNA provides latest information in numerous forms, from text, photo, video clip to infographic and other new media forms, in two languages – Vietnamese and English. It is linked with the multi-media system and the content management network of the VNA, and the website of the Organising Board of SEA Games 31 for the timely update on official information about the event. The VNA’s information about SEA Games 31 in English has also been shared with foreign news agencies that are the VNA’s partners, and published on the website of the Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies./.

Vietnam pins hope on Chess Grandmasters at SEA Games 31Chess Grandmasters Le Quang Liem and Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son are gold medal hopefuls of Vietnam at the upcoming 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31). SEA Games 31: Tickets sold out for Vietnam-Indonesia clashAll the tickets for the upcoming men’s football match between Vietnam and Indonesia as part of the SEA Games 31 have completely been sold out. Brunei to send 23 athletes to SEA Games 31Brunei will send 23 athletes to the 31st Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 31) to be hosted by Vietnam this month, according to the country’s Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports. Its contingent was 370 at the SEA Games 20 - its largest ever, followed by that of 271 to SEA Games 23 hosted by the Philippines in 2005. It obtained the best results at SEA Games 20 on home soil, clinching four golds, 12 silvers and 32 bronzes.

The website is avaiable in Vietnamese and English. (Photo: VNA)Officials launch the special website on SEA Games 31 on May 4. Information about SEA Games 31 in English has also been shared with foreign news agencies that are the VNA’s partners, and published on the website of the Organisation of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA). Press agencies are provided with an embed code to automatically get updates from the VNA's special website.The VNA has also coordinated with the Sub-Committee for Information and Communications of SEA Games 31 to organise a photo exhibition displaying 100 large-size photos that integrate hundreds of smaller photos featuring impressive moments of the Vietnamese delegation during different versions of SEA Games. The photo exhibition will be held at the press centre for SEA Games 31, located in the National Convention Centre./.

The Ministry of Health yesterday said that Vietnam run out of around 215 million doses of Covid-19 vaccine. The Consulate General of Vietnam in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, held a seminar with the Vietnam - Germany Innovation Network (VGInetwork). COVID-19: Vietnam confirms 2,709 new cases on May 3Vietnam reported 2,709 new cases of COVID-19 and no death in the past 24 hours from 4pm May 2 to 4pm May 3, according to the Ministry of Health. The annual tourney, held by the Vietnamese People Association in Shizuoka, coincided with Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s official visit to Vietnam. Vietnamese students in Russia compete in sportsThe 2022 Vietnamese Students' Sports Festival kicked off in Moscow on May 1.