Rt Hon Mark Field MP, UK Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific. Bilateral relations are extremely important and I’m delighted that the UK and Vietnam Strategic Partnership is growing. But I rarely have the opportunity to talk about the UK approach to Asia as a whole. On 14 August I made a speech in Jakarta and directly to you, I’d like to put that right. First, a short personal story. In 1962, my parents married in Singapore. I grew up hearing their stories about life in Asia. My interest only grew stronger when I first visited this wonderful continent over twenty years ago. It was already so different from my parents’ photographs, and that change continues apace. Quite rightly, the UK’s relationship with Asia has changed too - from that of my parents’ time, more than half a century ago, to the partnership we enjoy today, with our eyes firmly fixed on the future. We call our approach ‘All of Asia’, and we place a deliberate … [Read more...] about “Asia is the continent within which the world of the 21st century will be forged”
Why mission is important
Air Quality is About Choices
The Hanoitimes - Below is the exclusive paper of US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink for Hanoitimes, to mark the Clean Air Act being passed 48 years ago. US Ambassador to Vietnam Daniel Kritenbrink. Like many countries, the United States has had to deal with the challenges of air pollution. During my parents’ generation, air pollution was a subject of intense debate, and the outcome was a law passed in 1970, known as the Clean Air Act. It turned out to be one of the most important U.S. laws of the 20th Century, and best of all, it cleaned the air without hurting our economy. In fact, between 1970 and 2014, U.S. national emissions dropped an average of 69 percent, while gross domestic product grew by 238 percent. Of course, there is still more to be done, not just in the United States, but worldwide. That’s why the United States Mission to Vietnam is observing Air Quality Awareness Week from May 7-11, 2018, and we’d be honored … [Read more...] about Air Quality is About Choices
Transparency and accountability is a key to success
Ngô Thị Minh. — Photo baoquangninh.vn Ngô Thị Minh, Vice Chairwoman of the National Assembly Committee for Culture, Education, Youth and Children, speaks to Tuổi trẻ Cuối tuần (Youth Weekend Edition) on how best to utilise the State budget in general education. It is reported that 20 per cent of our annual State budget is allocated to education. Do you know how it is regulated and used? Education has been given the top priority by the Vietnamese Party, National Assembly and the government. However, even the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) doesn’t know how such a big sum has been used. Principally speaking, the MOET has to work closely with the Ministry of Finance and concerned ministries and agencies in the management of such a big sum of money. But, in reality I have to admit the co-ordination between the MOET with concerned Government agencies or offices is very loose and lacks transparency. Even the MOET does … [Read more...] about Transparency and accountability is a key to success
‘Cải lương is my life’: veteran actress Mỹ Châu
Viet Nam News by Thu Anh A biography on the 50-year-long career of meritorious cải lương (reformed opera) actress Mỹ Châu, who now lives in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, was recently released in HCM City. Châu, Chút Tạ Tình Tri Âm (Châu, an Appreciation of Life), written by Thanh Thủy and published by Saigon Books in co-operation with the Culture & Arts Publishing House, features the development of cải lương, a genre of traditional theatre in the south between the 1960s and 1990s. The book includes 268 pages and dozens of black-and-white and colour photographs of Châu and her colleagues by well-known artists living in Sài Gòn before and after 1975. The book features Châu’s memories of famous performers, including People’s Artist Phùng Há, a guru of cải lương, Minh Phụng, Thanh Nga, Hồng Nga and Minh Cảnh, who played an … [Read more...] about ‘Cải lương is my life’: veteran actress Mỹ Châu
60 years: the European Union is proud of its achievements
Viet Nam News Bruno Angelet* On March 25, the European Union will mark 60 years since the Rome Treaties were signed, the first step towards a united Europe. Since the birth of the European Communities in 1957, the citizens of our member states have enjoyed six decades of unprecedented peace, prosperity and security. The contrast to the first half of the 20th Century could not be greater. Two catastrophic wars in Europe between 1914 and 1945 left millions dead and a continent devastated, divided and prostrate. For countries that had long been at war, European integration has been the most successful peace project in our history. However, we are living in unpredictable times and the 60th anniversary of the Rome Treaties is the opportunity not only to reaffirm our commitment to the values and objectives on which the European project was founded but also to take pragmatic and ambitious steps forward. The 60th anniversary of the European Union is also an occasion for us mark our … [Read more...] about 60 years: the European Union is proud of its achievements