A summary of some of the leading news stories published Thursday (January 8) in Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper:

Politics

-- On January 7, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung met with new U.S. Ambassador Theodore Osius in Hanoi. At the meeting, the premier suggested both sides work hard toward cooperation as part of the two’s comprehensive partnership. U.S. Ambassador Osius also expressed his country’s ambition to be Vietnam’s No.1 investor as well as its biggest partner in economy, trade and investment.

Society

-- A center to recover dioxin victims was put into operation on Wednesday in the central province of Quang Ngai by Duc Pho District authorities. It is run by the Duc Pho District Association for Victims of Agent Orange.

-- Da Nang's Party Secretary Tran Tho has said the project to build a skyscraper dubbed a “lighthouse” on the Han River will be cancelled. Tho told Tuoi Tre that he had requested that the city’s government reconsider the position to build the so-called “lighthouse,” adding the project will be moved to another more appropriate location.

-- Nguyen Ba Thanh, chief of the Central Internal Affairs Commission of Vietnam and deputy head of the central anti-corruption committee, was diagnosed with bone marrow disorder, deputy head of the central healthcare commission Tran Huy Dung announced at a press conference on Wednesday. In the next few days, Thanh will return to Vietnam and receive treatment at Da Nang Hospital. Earlier, the scheduled flight for Thanh to return to Vietnam from a U.S. hospital on Tuesday was delayed due to bad weather.

-- Three fishermen in the central province of Thanh Hoa died on January 5 after eating a kind of strange sea snail. The snail was later identified as the Nassarius (Alectrion) glans glans (Linnaeus, 1758), which previously caused deaths because of poisoning.

Business

-- The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade has recently issued a regulation to tighten trading conditions for wine retailers. Accordingly, retailers must apply for authorities’ approval as well as submit reports on their trading statistics in the three preceding years, along with other papers.

Lifestyle

-- Twenty-two winners of the 2014 “Song Xanh” (Live Green) contest have recently been announced. The competition, which was held by Tuoi Tre from September 29 to December 15 last year, attracted more than 2,000 photos and 300 essays under the theme of the environment.