Britain and Vietnam on Friday finalised a free trade agreement (FTA), the second deal London has reached in Southeast Asia in as many days while deadlock continues over post-Brexit European Union (EU) arrangements.The deal with Vietnam comes into force 1 January, 2021 and will be Britain's third, following Thursday's pact with Singapore and October's first post-Brexit trade deal with Japan.Vietnam stands to benefit from tariff savings of £114 million (US$150.6 million) on its e

Facebook and Google are fast becoming "human rights-free zones" in Vietnam, Amnesty International warned Tuesday, accusing the tech titans of helping censor peaceful dissent and political expression in the country.Communist Vietnam has long jailed its critics but has come under fire in recent years for targeting users on Facebook, a popular forum for activists in the country where all independent media is banned.The social network admitted earlier this year that it was blocking cont

Vietnam's fragrant noodle soups and fresh spring rolls have won fans across the globe, but mounting food safety scandals on the country's streets are sparking a rising tide of anxiety among millennials about what they eat.Tran Huong Lan, a 32-year-old accountant, spent two nights in hospital the last time she ate "bun cha", Hanoi's signature pork noodles gobbled up by former United States (US) President Barack Obama and late celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain on a visit

Thousands of people fled their homes in Vietnam on Saturday as Typhoon Vamco barrelled towards central regions already pummelled by weeks of successive storms.Airports have been shut, beaches closed and a fishing ban put in place, as the country braces for winds of up to 100 kilometres (60 miles) per hour when the typhoon makes landfall on Sunday, likely close to Hue.Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in four central provinces, according to the disaster management author

United States (US) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called China's Communist government a "predator" Wednesday as he sought to tempt Sri Lanka away from Beijing's influence and later bolstered the US diplomatic presence in the neighbouring Maldives to counter the Asian superpower.Sri Lanka and the Maldives, both strategically located on key Indian Ocean trade routes, have borrowed heavily from Beijing in recent years, worrying Washington and other countries concerned by Chin

Newly appointed Prime Minister of Japan, Yoshihide Suga certainly understands the political importance of continuity, especially in Southeast Asia. Suga recently made a first stop in Hanoi, Vietnam and continued on to his second visit in the region to Jakarta, Indonesia. Both these Southeast Asian countries are seen as key to Japan's “free and open Indo-Pacific,” strategy. There are other reasons for Suga to visit these two countries as well.

More than 100 people have died and 20 others are missing in central Vietnam following weeks of severe flooding and landslides, authorities said Wednesday, as the country braced for yet another storm this weekend.About 178,000 homes have been submerged by floodwaters, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, with rescuers mounting a desperate bid to get food and drinking water to those cut off.Roads, infrastructure and crops in the central region have

Japan and Vietnam agreed to step up security and defence cooperation Monday, reaching an agreement in principle for Tokyo to export defence equipment and technology to the Southeast Asian nation.The deal comes as concerns mount over China's increasing assertiveness in the contested South China Sea, with Beijing expanding its military presence in the region.The pact would allow Japan to export equipment, likely including patrol planes and radar, to Vietnam, according to Japanese news agen

Vietnam, as the current Chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for 2020, has been actively involved with the association since 1995 when it joined the bloc with the aim of bringing all Southeast Asian countries together to promote regional peace, freedom, and prosperity. Vietnam has been making great strides in projecting itself as an effective leader, particularly with its proactive governance in handling the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change policy, and for its

Le Minh Tuan has curled up in the bed of his deceased son every night since the young man suffocated in a truck in Britain alongside dozens of other Vietnamese migrants one year ago.Four men are on trial in London over the deaths of the 39 Vietnamese men and women, facing various charges including manslaughter and conspiracy to smuggle people.But Tuan - like many of their grieving families - does not hold them responsible for the appalling tragedy."I don't blame anyone," he sai