International relations

Thai maritime police said they opened fire on a Vietnamese fishing boat while trying to intercept another vessel in waters near Malaysia last week, a clash Vietnamese state media said killed a fisherman and wounded two others. Officials from the two countries were quoted on 16 ...

Officials from Laos and Thailand have agreed to step up cooperative efforts investigating and controlling drugs along their shared border. The officials met on 16 September in Vientiane to also discuss their previous joint work on the anti-drug problems of both nations. Chairman of the Lao National Commission ...

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   ...

The Vietnamese government has introduced a new rule allowing coast guard forces to use weapons to chase away foreign vessels entering the country’s waters illegally. 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 ...

Laos’ upcoming presidency of the ASEAN could help Russia enhance trade and economic ties with Asia, Sputnik news cited Russian President Vladimir Putin as saying. Keep reading ...