TOPIC

/ location

Vietnam

Latest news, in-depth features and opinion on Vietnam, covering politics, economy, society and the country's relationships with the United States, Australia, China and neighbouring Southeast Asian countries.

Capital

Hanoi

Head of State

President To Lam

Head of Government

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh

To Lam

Beyond bamboo: Vietnam’s To Lam mounts a diplomacy offensive

The security chief turned paramount leader is chasing the markets and capital required to reach high-income status by 2045.

5 hours ago

2026 Xi-Trump summit

Trump and his CEOs want China’s business – but has Asia moved on?

16 May 2026 - 6:03AMvideocam

US-China relations

As I see it | Beijing had already won before the Trump-Xi summit even started

15 May 2026 - 8:43PMvideocam

Britain

Turning over a new leaf: why UK’s green mandate is a win for Asia

The Green Party’s record-breaking gains in UK council elections are a sign voters are taking climate change seriously, analysts say.

15 May 2026 - 2:45PMvideocam

Members of the Green Party celebrate a win in Bellingham in south London on May 9. Photo: EPA

Asean

Canada pushes to finalise Asean trade deal to cut US reliance

Ottawa is keen to sign an FTA with Asean this year, as analysts predict two-way growth in sectors ranging from mining to manufacturing.

15 May 2026 - 4:28PM

China-Latin America relations

China restores US beef trade amid Trump-Xi summit, alarming Brazilian exporters

Beijing’s renewal of import licences for US beef plants comes as Brazil nears its annual quota cap and scrambles for alternative markets.

15 May 2026 - 4:46AMvideocam

2026 Xi-Trump summit

Wary mood to mark Xi-Trump summit with irritants aplenty on both sides: analysts

Observers noted the number of recent strategic and trade blows, including the war on Iran, have not derailed the meeting from going ahead.

14 May 2026 - 1:50AMvideocam

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping pictured in 2017 at Mar-a-Lago in Florida. Photo: AP

United States

Vietnam asks US to let crucial oil tanker slip past Hormuz blockade

The ship’s destination, Nghi Son, can process 200,000 barrels a day – meaning the 1.99 million barrel load can keep it going for 10 days.

13 May 2026 - 11:42AMvideocam

Indonesia

Police raids reveal Indonesia as new hub for scam, gambling syndicates

Hundreds of foreigners have been arrested in Indonesia recently following crackdowns against crime groups in Cambodia and Myanmar.

12 May 2026 - 8:11PMvideocam

Indonesia

321 foreigners arrested in Indonesia online gambling crackdown

The foreigners, mainly from Vietnam, were arrested near Jakarta’s Chinatown section that investigators described as a hub for more than 70 online gambling websites.

11 May 2026 - 11:13AMvideocam

Suspected online gambling operators (in orange) walk towards buses for transfer after a police raid at the Hayam Wuruk Plaza office building in Jakarta on Sunday. Photo: AFP

India

Vietnam joins rush for India’s battle-tested ‘strong, non-Western’ BrahMos

As a joint Indo-Russian venture, BrahMos offers a supersonic, non-Western alternative to US hardware with no Nato-linked conditions.

10 May 2026 - 1:35PMvideocam

A man waves India’s national flag in front of a replica of the BrahMos missile system in Ahmedabad last year. Photo: AFP

South China Sea

Vietnam adds over 2 square km of land in South China Sea, US report says

The expansion brings its total reclaimed area to roughly 11 square km, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative.

9 May 2026 - 2:07PM

China trade

How a China-backed highway may turn landlocked Laos into a trade gateway

The project is part of wider efforts to build overland trade corridors linking southern China with the Mekong region.

9 May 2026 - 7:11AM

Science

Why are China’s coastal fish farms disappearing while India’s are expanding?

China’s coastal aquaculture ponds span the largest area in the world but they are shrinking – and that is a good thing.

8 May 2026 - 5:00PM

Aquaculture workers check sea cucumber growth at a marine farm in China's eastern Shandong province. Photo: Xinhua

To Lam

Vietnam burns red tape but growth may be harder to rekindle

Vietnam’s drive to energise its economy may take time to materialise in the face of rising fuel costs and trade barriers, analysts say.

8 May 2026 - 10:43AM

A labourer works at a construction site in Hanoi in April. Vietnam’s President To Lam has set an annual growth target of 10 per cent until 2030. Photo: EPA

Asean

Opinion | Why China’s warning over military blocs is finding listeners in Asia

For regional governments, strategy is about preserving options. China has read this instinct carefully and given it a diplomatic vocabulary.

8 May 2026 - 5:30AMvideocam

US-China trade war

Trump-Xi summit hides simmering trade tensions under the surface, experts say

Despite declarations of cooperation, friendship and respect from both sides, major trade conflict is brewing between the two superpowers.

8 May 2026 - 3:12AMvideocam

India

Vietnam, India seek closer ties to hedge against dependence on superpowers

President To Lam’s agenda during his visit to New Delhi is expected to include a deal for Vietnam to buy India’s BrahMos missiles.

7 May 2026 - 4:35PM

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Vietnamese President To Lam before their talks at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Wednesday. Photo: EPA

Asean

Opinion | Asia must unite to avert an Iran war food crisis

The energy and fertiliser shocks come amid crucial planting windows for Asia’s farmers, exposing the region’s dire dependencies.

6 May 2026 - 4:30PMvideocam

European cinema

Who was Marguerite Duras? Decoding the French cinema radical’s dual identity

Born in French Indochina in 1914, Duras was a visionary who treated the silver screen as a canvas for her haunting psychological experiments.

5 May 2026 - 3:15PM

North Korea

Pitch perfect diplomacy? North Korean footballers head to South Korea

The visit by Naegohyang Women’s FC to South Korea’s Suwon for a competitive match does not signal a thaw in inter-Korea ties, analysts say.

4 May 2026 - 7:05PM

South Korea’s Suwon FC Women and North Korea’s Naegohyang Women’s FC walk onto the pitch ahead of their Asian Football Confederation Women’s Champions League group stage match in Myanmar in November. Photo: YouTube/The AFC Hub

Yuan

How China is quietly reshaping Southeast Asia’s payments beyond the US dollar

New initiative lets consumers use home-grown apps like Alipay for cross-border payments – supporting Beijing’s push to expand regional financial links.

4 May 2026 - 5:00PMvideocam

Alipay QR code in Jakarta, Indonesia, after the launch of the China-Indonesia cross-border payment system. Photo: Xinhua

Middle East

Letters | UAE’s Opec exit reflects a complex world

Readers discuss the UAE’s decision to leave the oil cartel, and a Vietnamese leader’s choice to travel twice on China’s high-speed trains.

4 May 2026 - 11:30AM

South Korea

‘Stay to end’: South Korean agency pledges funeral support for foreign workers

Foreign workers, who comprise roughly 3.5 per cent of the workforce, account for over 10 per cent of annual workplace fatalities.

4 May 2026 - 9:53AM

Japan

Takaichi bound for Australia to strengthen economic, security ties

The Prime Minister’s three-day visit will focus on defence, critical minerals and broader economic security as Japan takes a more assertive military stance.

3 May 2026 - 6:11PMvideocam

Japan

Takaichi to hold talks in Vietnam on economic security, critical minerals

Both sides are expected to discuss cooperation in areas such as energy and artificial intelligence.

2 May 2026 - 4:15PMvideocam

Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi arrives at Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi on Friday. Photo: AFP

China trade

Durian Express? China brings in cheaper fruit with new Southeast Asia train

A new cold-storage rail service is whisking mountains of durians from Thailand to China, reducing prices for the prized fruit.

2 May 2026 - 10:02AM

Asean

Why Singapore, Thailand are among the world’s ‘happiest’ economies

Southeast Asian countries outdid larger economies in the 178-nation Hanke’s Annual Misery Index for 2025.

1 May 2026 - 8:58PMvideocam

Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.

SUPPORT NOW

Vietnam

Beyond bamboo: Vietnam’s To Lam mounts a diplomacy offensive

The security chief turned paramount leader is chasing the markets and capital required to reach high-income status by 2045.

Trump and his CEOs want China’s business – but has Asia moved on?

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}As I see it | Beijing had already won before the Trump-Xi summit even started

Turning over a new leaf: why UK’s green mandate is a win for Asia

The Green Party’s record-breaking gains in UK council elections are a sign voters are taking climate change seriously, analysts say.

Canada pushes to finalise Asean trade deal to cut US reliance

Ottawa is keen to sign an FTA with Asean this year, as analysts predict two-way growth in sectors ranging from mining to manufacturing.

China restores US beef trade amid Trump-Xi summit, alarming Brazilian exporters

Beijing’s renewal of import licences for US beef plants comes as Brazil nears its annual quota cap and scrambles for alternative markets.

Wary mood to mark Xi-Trump summit with irritants aplenty on both sides: analysts

Observers noted the number of recent strategic and trade blows, including the war on Iran, have not derailed the meeting from going ahead.

Vietnam asks US to let crucial oil tanker slip past Hormuz blockade

The ship’s destination, Nghi Son, can process 200,000 barrels a day – meaning the 1.99 million barrel load can keep it going for 10 days.

Police raids reveal Indonesia as new hub for scam, gambling syndicates

Hundreds of foreigners have been arrested in Indonesia recently following crackdowns against crime groups in Cambodia and Myanmar.

321 foreigners arrested in Indonesia online gambling crackdown

The foreigners, mainly from Vietnam, were arrested near Jakarta’s Chinatown section that investigators described as a hub for more than 70 online gambling websites.

Vietnam joins rush for India’s battle-tested ‘strong, non-Western’ BrahMos

As a joint Indo-Russian venture, BrahMos offers a supersonic, non-Western alternative to US hardware with no Nato-linked conditions.

Vietnam adds over 2 square km of land in South China Sea, US report says

The expansion brings its total reclaimed area to roughly 11 square km, according to the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative.

How a China-backed highway may turn landlocked Laos into a trade gateway

The project is part of wider efforts to build overland trade corridors linking southern China with the Mekong region.

Why are China’s coastal fish farms disappearing while India’s are expanding?

China’s coastal aquaculture ponds span the largest area in the world but they are shrinking – and that is a good thing.

Vietnam burns red tape but growth may be harder to rekindle

Vietnam’s drive to energise its economy may take time to materialise in the face of rising fuel costs and trade barriers, analysts say.

Opinion | Why China’s warning over military blocs is finding listeners in Asia

For regional governments, strategy is about preserving options. China has read this instinct carefully and given it a diplomatic vocabulary.

Trump-Xi summit hides simmering trade tensions under the surface, experts say

Despite declarations of cooperation, friendship and respect from both sides, major trade conflict is brewing between the two superpowers.

Vietnam, India seek closer ties to hedge against dependence on superpowers

President To Lam’s agenda during his visit to New Delhi is expected to include a deal for Vietnam to buy India’s BrahMos missiles.

Opinion | Asia must unite to avert an Iran war food crisis

The energy and fertiliser shocks come amid crucial planting windows for Asia’s farmers, exposing the region’s dire dependencies.

Who was Marguerite Duras? Decoding the French cinema radical’s dual identity

Born in French Indochina in 1914, Duras was a visionary who treated the silver screen as a canvas for her haunting psychological experiments.

Pitch perfect diplomacy? North Korean footballers head to South Korea

The visit by Naegohyang Women’s FC to South Korea’s Suwon for a competitive match does not signal a thaw in inter-Korea ties, analysts say.

How China is quietly reshaping Southeast Asia’s payments beyond the US dollar

New initiative lets consumers use home-grown apps like Alipay for cross-border payments – supporting Beijing’s push to expand regional financial links.

.css-19im5qg{color:#c79a00;}Letters | UAE’s Opec exit reflects a complex world

Readers discuss the UAE’s decision to leave the oil cartel, and a Vietnamese leader’s choice to travel twice on China’s high-speed trains.

‘Stay to end’: South Korean agency pledges funeral support for foreign workers

Foreign workers, who comprise roughly 3.5 per cent of the workforce, account for over 10 per cent of annual workplace fatalities.

Takaichi bound for Australia to strengthen economic, security ties

The Prime Minister’s three-day visit will focus on defence, critical minerals and broader economic security as Japan takes a more assertive military stance.

Takaichi to hold talks in Vietnam on economic security, critical minerals

Both sides are expected to discuss cooperation in areas such as energy and artificial intelligence.

Durian Express? China brings in cheaper fruit with new Southeast Asia train

A new cold-storage rail service is whisking mountains of durians from Thailand to China, reducing prices for the prized fruit.

Why Singapore, Thailand are among the world’s ‘happiest’ economies

Southeast Asian countries outdid larger economies in the 178-nation Hanke’s Annual Misery Index for 2025.

As I see it | Beijing had already won before the Trump-Xi summit even started

Letters | UAE’s Opec exit reflects a complex world