National government

Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli on 17 September met with leaders from Thailand, Myanmar and Laos ahead of an annual expo and business summit between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in southwest China. They will attend the 12th China-ASEAN Expo and the China-ASEAN Business and Investment ...

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged on 15 September that his country will extend 100 billion yen ($835 million) in loans for Vietnam to boost the Southeast Asian economy’s infrastructural development, as Tokyo and Hanoi aim to strengthen ties on the economic and security fronts. Keep reading ...

India’s Vice-president Hamid Ansari will be travelling to two key South-East Asian countries, Cambodia and Lao People’s Democratic Republic, with which India has cultural and religious links dating back centuries, but are currently perceived to be closer to India’s strategic rival China. Ansari, who begins his ...

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief will embark on a four-day visit to Japan on 14 September, seeking not only investment opportunities but geopolitical assurances as China continues its aggressive maritime posturing, according to experts. Nguyen Phu Trong will also become the first party leader to have visited ...

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc received Lao Minister of Planning and Investment Somdy Douangdy in Hanoi on 10 September, during which he proposed that Laos support the implementation of Vietnam-invested projects there. Keep reading   ...

Representatives from about 70 Vietnamese and Egyptian enterprises shared information on business opportunities at a forum in Cairo on 7 September. Keep reading ...

The Ministry of Finance plans to forgo fines imposed on businesses which were behind their tax due date if their partners, including state agencies, had failed to pay them on time in accordance with contract terms. Keep reading ...

As with most deadlines and dates this election season, the start of the official candidate campaign period is rolling by only partially heeded. Political parties had to miss scheduled campaign kick-off events – and the unveiling of campaign songs and slogans – because the candidate ...

Five companies have been chosen to import buses for the BRT lite system, according to U Maung Aung, chair of the BRT lite committee. Authorities hope the BRT lite plan will bring order out of the near-chaos of Yangon’s multiple privately owned buses in competition with ...

A council appointed by Thailand’s military rulers has rejected a controversial new constitution drafted after last year’s coup. A new committee must now be appointed to write another draft, further setting back elections. The draft has been widely criticised, in particular a clause which enables a 23-member ...