New visa regulation for VN, Cambodia’s citizens; Vietnam, China set up joint committee for border management; Party delegation visits Laos; People’s Army Day celebrated in Russia

New visa regulation for VN, Cambodia’s citizens

As from Jan. 1, 2010, citizens of Vietnam and Cambodia holding ordinary passports valid for at least six months will need no visa to enter or transit the other country, according to the Foreign Ministry’s Consular Department.

Those citizens of one country may stay in the other country for up to 30 days instead of 14 days, the department said.

The new visa regulation applies according to the amendment of the bilateral agreement on visa exemption, which was signed in November and took effect in December 2008.

Vietnam, China set up joint committee for border management

Vietnam and China have agreed to set up a joint committee to manage the border, landmarks and border gates between the two countries, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The agreement was reached at a four-day session of the Vietnam-China Joint Committee on Land Border Demarcation, which ended on December 24 in Ho Chi Minh City

The new joint committee will manage the border, landmarks and border gates in accordance with relevant provisions of the Protocol on Border Demarcation, the Agreement on Border Management Regulations and the Agreement on Border Gates and Border Gate Management Regulations signed by the two governments’ representatives in November this year.

Cao Bang urged to enhance Party building

Other localities should learn from the experience of the northern mountainous province of Cao Bang in creating policies for ethnic minority people, said Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Nguyen Phu Trong during his working visit to the province on December 26-27.

During the visit, Mr Trong and his delegation met with key provincial leaders to examine the implementation of Party resolutions and iron out snags in the current situation.

20 years after implementing the Doi Moi (renewal) process, Cao Bang’s average economic growth rate hit nearly 12 percent in the 2006-2009 period, and the number of poor households dropped by 23 percent.

The number of private businesses increased from 93 to 610 so far with a total investment capital of VND3,600 billion.

However, Cao Bang is still facing a lot of difficulties due to the large number of poor households, ineffective management of the collective economy, uncontrolled emigration and the poor organization of Party cells.

To prepare for the all-level Party Congress towards the 11th National Party Congress, the NA leader asked the province to find ways to deal with its pending issues and come up with a long-term development strategy while enhancing Party building.

On the occasion, Mr Trong and his delegation also visited border guards in the Ban Gioc Waterfall tourist area and presented gifts to some social policy beneficiary families and revolutionary war veterans.

Party delegation visits Laos

The Party and State of Laos praised developments in all-round cooperation with Vietnam over the last year, especially in politics, economics, culture, education and health care, says a senior Lao State official.

“The Vietnamese Party, State and people have provided Laos with prompt and effective assistance,” Vice President Bounnhang Volachith said at a meeting with a delegation from the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee (CPVCC)’s Organisation Commission in Vientiane on December 25.

He thanked the Vietnamese government for providing aid to build schools in capital Vientiane and other localities and granting scholarships to Lao students studying in Vietnam.

The Lao official, who is also a member of the Political Bureau and permanent secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party (LPRP), also referred to Vietnam’s great contributions to the success of the freshly-concluded 25th SEA Games in Laos.

“The LPRP, the State and people of Laos are always fully aware of preserving and continuously fostering the special friendship and comprehensive cooperation with the Vietnamese Party, State and people, in the interests of each country and for peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world at large,” Volachith said.

He said he hopes the Organisation Commissions of the two parties will continue to help each other and share experiences in the Party building work and preparations for the national Party Congresses of each country in early 2011.

Nguyen Duc Hat, a CPVCC member and Deputy Head of the CPVCC’s Organisation Commission, who led the delegation, vowed to work closely with the LPRP Central Committee’s Organisation Commission. He briefed his host on the results of the Vietnamese delegation’s visit to Laos from December 21-26.

People’s Army Day celebrated in Russia

A seminar to celebrate the 65th anniversary of Vietnam’s People’s Army Day was held on December 24 by the Russia-Vietnam Friendship Association (RVFA) and the Association of Russia Military Experts (ARME) in Vietnam.

The seminar, which took place at the Moscow Institute of Economics, Management and Law, was attended by Vietnamese Ambassador to Russia Bui Dinh Dinh, Defense attaché Vu Van Xim, RVFA Chairman Vladimir Buianov, ARME Chairman Nicolai Colesnic and Russian veterans who used to work in Vietnam.

Participants highlighted the achievements recorded by the Vietnam People’s Army since its foundation, especially during the past resistance wars against French and American aggression as well as the current cause of national construction.

Ambassador Bui Dinh Dinh expressed his thanks for the assistance of Russian veterans along with the hope that the relations between the two countries would deepen even further.

PV