Politics

-- Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong received James Alix Michel, President of the Republic of Seychelles, an African country, in Hanoi on Wednesday, saying Vietnam always prefer to strengthen cooperation with Africa, including Seychelles.

-- Vietnam lodged a protest on Wednesday against China for printing islands belonging to the former’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago on one of the six stamp samples the latter had issued in May this year.

Society

-- Over 2,000 soldiers and civilians participated in an earthquake drill in the central province of Quang Nam. The scenario was a 6.2-magnitude quake hit Bac Tra My District at 6:30 am, killing 50 people, injuring 120, and leaving 30 missing. Many tremors have occurred in Bac Tra My in recent times.

-- Doctors at a hospital in the central province of Thanh Hoa have apologized to a woman for misdiagnosing her with HIV. The woman was given an HIV test before she gave birth to a baby at the hospital last Friday.

-- Three people hailing from the northern province of Quang Ninh and the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap have been arrested on charges of smuggling over 6,600 tonnes of oil worth more than US$6.9 million to China, Vietnamese police have said.

Business

-- Gold buyers are now required to present their ID card when they purchase gold worth VND300 million ($14,285) or more, a central bank official told local media on Wednesday. This regulation is to tackle money laundering activities, the official explained. 

-- No-frills carrier Jetstar Pacific Airlines has announced a 50 percent discount on airfare for flights from Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang City in September and October.

-- Vietnam and Israeal inaugurated a hi-tech milk cow farm in Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday. The farm cost VND70 billion ($3.3 million) and can accommodate 120 dairy cows.

Lifestyle

-- A seven-day display of maps and documents related to Vietnam’s Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelagoes concluded on Wednesday in Ho Chi Minh City. The organizer said about 140,000 people visited the exhibition.

Sports

-- Vietnam will send track cyclists to the Republic of Korea for training from September 2 to October 17, local sports officials said at a press conference in Hanoi on Wednesday. This is part of the Southeast Asian nation’s efforts to train track cyclists for the 2014 Asian Games to be held in the Korean city of Incheon from September 19 to October 4, 2014 and for the 2019 Asian Games hosted by Hanoi.