By combining performing arts and modern technology, audiences can easily understand history and learn to appreciate and preserve tangible and intangible cultural heritage.

For the first time, there will be a real scene performance on the Red River – Chem communal house.

The National Special Relics of Chem Communal House (Thuy Phuong Ward, Bac Tu Liem District, Hanoi) will be highlighted during the real scene art program titled “Sacred Chem Communal House – Flow of Essence” on November 18.

This is part of the Hanoi Creative Design Festival organized by the Bac Tu Liem District People’s Committee in cooperation with Tuoi Tre Thu Do newspaper.

The Chem Communal House is listed as a National Special Relic. Photo: The Hanoi Times

The program is divided into three episodes: Sources of Civilization, Thousand-Year Masterpieces – Soul of the Nation and Brightening the Quintessence.

In particular, the program will take place on two stages, of which, for the first time, there will be a real stage on the Red River, designed and choreographed by General Director Mai Thanh Tung. This part will feature traditional performing arts such as Hanoi Xam singing (music of the wandering blind), Xoe Thai from Yen Bai Province, Bac Ninh quan ho (love duet), and Muong folk songs.

The program has the participation of famous artists: Tung Duong, Kyo York, Thai Thuy Linh, Ngoc Ky, Viet Danh, Ha Myo, Quach Mai Thy, Le Anh, Le Trang, Oscar Dance Company and Lavender Dance Company.

The scene “Sacred Chem communal house” through the narration of Meritorious Artist Le Chuc will bring out the stature and meaning of the ancient communal house.

Le Thi Thu Huong, Vice Chairwoman of the People’s Committee of Bac Tu Liem District speaks at the press briefing. Photo: The Hanoi Times

Director Mai Thanh Tung said the program introduces the sacred community house on the Red River, the breath and heart of the Vietnamese people through many generations, honoring traditional art forms and national quintessence, expressing the wisdom and idiosyncrasy of the local people.

The program is organized to promote the potential and strengths of Bac Tu Liem District, raising awareness among businesses and social communities about the design and creative industries and contributing to the economic development of the district, according to Le Thi Thu Huong, Vice Chairwoman of the Bac Tu Liem District People’s Committee.

“We hope that through this program, people will learn about the history of the Chem communal house and the history of Bac Tu Liem District, which is expected to facilitate cultural ties between Bac Tu Liem and other districts in Hanoi and municipalities nationwide in the future,” Huong said.

Meritorious Artist Le Chuc will be the narrator of the art performance. Photo: The Hanoi Times

Located on the bank of the Red River, the Chem communal house in Bac Tu Liem District is one of the oldest in Vietnam. It is dedicated to Saint Chem, whose real name was Ly Ong Trong. He was a talented general under King Hung Due Vuong of the Van Lang Kingdom and King An Duong Vuong of the Au Lac Kingdom, now Vietnam. He defeated foreign invaders and was honored as Saint Chem for his leadership and skill in warfare. A temple dedicated to him was built in Chem, his home village.

Since its construction around 200 B.C., the Chem communal house has undergone several restorations. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism listed it as a national intangible cultural heritage site in 2016.

Check out the latest events in Vietnam today.

Vietnam ready to provide aid to Cuba: Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang

Vietnam is willing to help Cuba overcome difficulties and achieve the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the UN Sustainable Development told UN Resident Coordinator in Cuba Francisco Pichon on November 11.

Stressing the friendship and special relationship between Vietnam and Cuba , Giang said Vietnam has provided assistance to Cuba in various fields, especially in agriculture and food production.

Ho Chi Minh City to upgrade tourism products and services for 2024

Improving products and services, adopting digital solutions, and strengthening cooperation with other provinces and cities are among the key measures to boost Ho Chi Minh City’s tourism sector in 2024. The southern metropolis plans to welcome around 44 million tourists next year, including six million foreigners, and earn VND190 trillion (US$7.8 billion) from the travel industry.

In 2023, the city has received about 35 million visitors, up 12% year-on-year, including about five million international arrivals, an annual increase of 44%. Total revenue from tourism activities is estimated at VND160 trillion ($6.5 billion), up one-fifth from last year.

Gia Lai Tourism and Culture Week opens

Gong performance at the Gia Lai Tourism and Culture Week 2023. Photo: People’s Army Newspaper

The Gia Lai 2023 Culture and Tourism Week kicked off on November 11 with activities to promote local cultural features to both domestic and international communities and strengthen ties between the province and other localities nationwide.

On the opening night, Gia Lai Province announced the certification of the Roc Tung – Go Da Special National Relic and the recognition of the An Khe Paleolithic Collection as a National Treasure. The week-long event also includes the third Central Highlands Gong Culture Festival, a Wild Flowers – Chu Dang Ya Volcano Festival from November 10 to 12.

Vietnam invests nearly $5.5 billion in Laos

Vietnamese enterprises and organizations have invested nearly US$5.5 billion in Laos , a conference on Vietnam-Laos relations in Thua Thien Hue province heard on November 11. Vietnam ranks third among all 79 foreign investors in Laos, focusing on the telecommunications and information technology sectors, providing Lao people with access to high-speed 4G technologies.

The conference is one of a series of key activities to celebrate the 61st anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two nations.

Local ritual ceremony honoring navy soldiers to become national event

The ritual ceremony commemorating the Hoang Sa (Paracel) Marines will be held as a week-long national festival at the end of April 2024, according to a meeting between the Vietnam National Authority for Tourism and the Quang Ngai Provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism on November 11. The ritual ceremony was recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage in 2013.

The event will feature activities highlighted by a canoe race, a national folk singing competition, a women’s beach volleyball tournament, a marathon, and a photo exhibition of Vietnamese islands.

Best rural start-up projects to be named tonight

A closing ceremony will be held tonight (November 12) at April 30 Park in Soc Trang City, Soc Trang Province, to honor the best start-up projects of young people from rural areas. The top three winners will receive a maximum of VND1 billion ($41,100) each to realize their initiatives.

Launched at the end of March 2023, the contest assessed 446 projects, including 62 projects done by young people from ethnic minorities. After evaluation, 40 projects were selected as finalists. The contest aims to encourage young people in rural areas to become more involved in the agriculture sector .

This year, Team Viettel brought a squad of 16 cybersecurity experts to Pwn2Own Toronto 2023. White-hat hackers from Viettel Cyber Security (VCS) conducted penetration testing on a variety of target devices, including mobile phones, three types of printers, smart speakers, SOHO Smash-up (small office equipment), and network storage devices. Team Viettel excelled in all 7 categories, earning a perfect score of 30 points. This achievement set them apart from the second-place team, which scored 12.75 points, solidifying their impressive world championship win.

Pwn2Own is a prestigious and the largest cybersecurity attack competition globally, organized annually by the Zero Day Initiative since 2007. It is often likened to the “World Cup” of the cybersecurity world. In 2023, more than 20 teams from 17 countries participated. The VCS expert team has competed in Pwn2Own six times, and on their first attempt, they ranked fifth. Winning the Pwn2Own 2023 championship further cements VCS’s international reputation as one of the major players in the field of cybersecurity, leaving an indelible mark on the global cybersecurity landscape.

Before this achievement, VCS’s cybersecurity experts had already gained recognition from the international community, global cybersecurity rankings, and major technology companies like Microsoft, Bugcrowd, and Google. To date, VCS has identified over 400 Zero-day security vulnerabilities in prominent IT platforms and systems, such as Microsoft, Oracle, Google, Apache, and VMWare. These discoveries have contributed to reducing cyberattacks and enhancing global cybersecurity awareness.

Translated by Chung Anh

Regarding infrastructure, Viettel has 12 labs, two testing areas, and two international standard production lines. In technology, Viettel owns a large number of products and services with 270 core technologies, more than 50 product categories in 10 high-tech defense industries; and 4G, 5G infrastructure. During this year’s Vietnam International Innovation Expo, Viettel announced its successful research of the first 5G chipset in Vietnam completely made by the company.

In terms of patents, Viettel ranks No.1 in Vietnam in registering and receiving licenses. Currently, it has 116 patents in Vietnam and 29 patents in the U.S.

Viettel is also a leading enterprise in the fields of AI, Cloud, IoT, Big Data… with platforms such as Viettel AI Open Platform, Viettel Cloud ecosystem with 70 products, Viettel IoT Innoway platform…

In the field of network security, Viettel is proud to be the No.1 business in Vietnam with eight services and 15 product lines, protecting different user groups.

In the past 10 years, Viettel’s state budget payment increased by 179.7% from VND 13,586 billion in 2013 to VND 38,000 billion in 2022. It is also the only Vietnamese enterprise listed in the top 500 most valuable brands in the world, according to Brand Finance.

Translated by Minh Anh

This year, the Vietnamese military business will introduce 60 models and videos of its products of eight categories, namely communications, electronic warfare, simulation models, opto-electronics, radar, command and control, UAV, and Private 5G network.

The recent participation of Viettel in large-scale and prestigious events in the world demonstrates its confidence in mastering technologies and affirms its competitiveness in defense industry. The Defense & Security 2023 is considered an opportunity for the business to enhance trade promotion with potential customers in the region.

With the message of “Power of Partnership,” this year’s event will gather more than 500 leading defense and security companies, including Thales (France), Saab (Sweden), Diehl (Germany), Aselsan (Turkey), and Embraer (Brazil), among others. With the target to connect governments and defense industry businesses around the globe, the exhibition will also welcome more than 20,000 experts from 65 countries and 400 delegations representing more than 35 countries.

The Defense & Security 2023’s exhibits will include various kinds of guns, missiles, tanks, UAVs, military vehicles, satellites and telecom devices, electronic defense equipment, launchers, and other weapon systems.

Sponsored by the Thai Defense Ministry, the Defense & Security is among world’s top 15 military exhibitions and the largest one in Southeast Asia. Over the past 20 years, the biennial exhibition has been considered the leading regional security and defense event in Southeast Asia.

Translated by Tran Hoai

The delegation included representatives from the leadership of the Ministry of National Defense and the Army Corps 12 Command.

Senior Lieutenant General Vu Hai San assessed the construction progress of component projects, namely Bung – Van Ninh and Van Ninh – Cam Lo, part of the East section of the North-South Expressway construction project for the 2021-2025 period.

The Bung – Van Ninh component project spans a total length of 18.57km in the province of Quang Binh, with an investment capital of VND 2,147.724 billion. Meanwhile, the Van Ninh – Cam Lo project, covering the provinces of Quang Binh and Quang Tri, has a total length of 33 km, with an investment capital of VND 1,123 billion. The Army Corps 12 Command has recently focused on directing affiliated agencies and units to mobilize forces, vehicles, and equipment to implement the project to meet the set deadlines.

Directly inspecting the construction sites and listening to the reports from the Army Corps 12 leadership, Senior Lieutenant General Vu Hai San acknowledged and commended the results achieved by the units.

Emphasizing the significance of these key projects, Senior Lieutenant General Vu Hai San urged Army Corps 12 to continue comprehensive guidance, focus on supplementing manpower and mobilizing equipment to accelerate the construction progress. The corps should regularly coordinate closely with the local Party committee and authority to promptly address difficulties during construction, effectively carry out mass mobilization work in the area, and pay attention to ensuring interests for officers, staff and employees.

During the inspection at Brigade 384 (Army Corps 12), Senior Lieutenant General Vu Hai San urged the unit to thoroughly implement military and defense tasks, integrating them with production and business activities. He also emphasized the need for meticulous preparation to carry out the construction of the brigade’s headquarters, ensuring quality and adherence to investment procedural requirements.

Translated by Chung Anh

The Malaysian official said that he visited a number of large defense expos in the world; however, it was his first stop at a Vietnamese booth in Thailand.

After hearing introductions about Viettel’s exhibited products, he expressed his delight at the incredible technological development of Vietnam and its capability to provide its technologies for other countries in the region.

Rear Admiral Shamsuddin Bin HJ Ludin was impressed with Viettel’s diverse products, particularly radars, and communication and optoelectronic equipment.

“I think Viettel and Malaysia could coordinate and think about exporting defense technological products. I want to invite Viettel to attend Malaysia-hosted defense event and I believe that what you bring to the event will surprise everyone,” said the Malaysian rear admiral.

The same day, head of the organizer of the Defense & Security 2023, Permanent Secretary for Defense under the Thai Ministry of Defense General Sanitchanog Sangkachantra visited Viettel’s booth.

Thai Air Marshal KidKuan Sadub from the Thai Royal Air Force also visited the booth, during which he was introduced to the details of some Viettel’s products and expressed his admiration for the group’s mastery of them.

Translated by Mai Huong

At the event, Major General Nguyen Thanh Nam, Viettel’s Deputy General Director, reported that the group has determined its overall goal that by 2030, it will have owned the top high-quality human resources in Vietnam and be among the leading groups in Southeast Asia in terms of digital technology and high-tech research capabilities.

Particularly, each industry sector of the group must have at least 3-5 regional leading experts (excluding the group’s specific industries), and 30 per cent of the group’s personnel work in the digital technology field.

To this end, the Viettel official said that alongside developing its current personnel, the group also carries out policies to attract more domestic and international experienced experts. He confirmed that Viettel stands ready to enhance digital transformation in the military and in the country in general.

In his concluding speech, Gen. Vinh asked Viettel to directly engage in the digital transformation human resource training with the MND.

He requested the group to do research, adjust, and complete training documents and online learning platforms that have been applied to suit each officer and unit and make suggestions to the MND to include them in the military training programs.

The deputy defense minister also asked the group to create conditions for information technology and digital transformation training and research institutions of the MND to exploit and use telecommunications labs, information technology, and get access to advanced chip designs.

Regarding Viettel’s recommendations and proposals, Gen. Vinh assigned the group to coordinate with relevant agencies to make a report to submit to the MND for consideration.

Translated by Mai Huong

Ambassador Duong Hai Hung on November 9 had a working session with Vice Mayor of the City of Turin Michela Favaro who underlined that Turin and Vietnamese localities boast great cooperation potential and opportunities.

Favaro said that the City of Turin, which is strong in industrial production, manufacturing and automobile production, energy transition, digitization, as well as urban management, heritage conservation, education, training and research, tourism, and event organization, wishes to promote cooperation with Vietnamese localities and partners in these fields.

The official affirmed that Turin will help promote the image of Vietnam and send delegations to the Southeast Asian country to seek collaboration opportunities with Vietnamese localities, especially Ho Chi Minh City which had set up twinned relations with Turin.

Hung held that Turin and HCM City should increase cooperation in the fields of economy, urban management, culture, heritage conservation, as well as during the implementation of the idea to organize the Vietnamese Year in Turin and the Italian Year in HCM City, which was given during the recent visit to Turin by Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Vo Van Hoan.

The diplomat also expressed his hope that Turin will take Vietnam as a priority country in its internationalization policy, while promoting partnership with Vietnam in trade, investment, technology transfer, supporting Vietnam in human resource training and designing economic transformation policy towards green, digital, sustainable and circular in the coming time.

At the Vietnam – Turin Economic Forum held on November 9, Hung held that Turin and Piedmonte region have strengths in industrial production, automobile manufacturing, banking and services match the demand of Vietnam during the country’s modernization and industrialization process, especially in the fields of basic industry, manufacturing, machinery production, high-tech agriculture, research, innovation, banking and financial services.

The diplomat pledged that the Vietnamese Embassy is ready to support and accompany Italian companies in tapping business opportunities with Vietnam. He also introduced Vietnam’s new visa policy which is hoped to lure more tourists and businesses to the Southeast Asian nation.

Addressing the forum, Guido Bolatto, Secretary General of the Turin Chamber of Commerce, held that the presence of local prestigious firms such as Lavazza, Aurora and Pinifarina showed their interest in the Vietnamese market, affirming that this is a good time for the two sides to promote their comprehensive and strong cooperation.

Fulvio Albano, President of the Asia Economic Cultural Council of Italy, described Vietnam as a potential market and a gateway to Southeast Asia, as well as the close relations between Vietnam and Turin which is considered a Vietnamese center in Italy.

Meanwhile, Vietnamese Trade Counselor Duong Phuong Thao pointed out 10 reasons why investors should choose Vietnam, including a favorable location, a stable government with firm economic vision, a young workforce and a wide network of 18 free trade agreements that Vietnam has signed with partners.

During his stay in Turin, Ambassador Duong Hai Hung also had meetings with leaders of major local businesses to discuss specific measures to promote their collaboration with Vietnamese partners.

On the occasion, the Vietnamese Embassy also organized a program on Vietnamese culture promotion and exchange at the University of Turin, which comprised an art exhibition, and an event to introduce Vietnamese traditional cuisine.

Principal of the University of Turin Stefano Geuna said that the university plans to launch a Vietnamese faculty in 2024, becoming the third university in Italy to teach Vietnamese language.

Within the program’s framework, a talk show on the similarities between the culture of Vietnam and Italy was also held, gathering a large number of Vietnamese and Italian cultural experts.

Source: VNA