Tuoi Tre News briefs you on some of the leading stories published today, January 16, in Vietnamese media:

Politics

-- The Vietnamese Party, Government, and people always attach importance to maintaining and developing friendship and cooperation with China in a stable, healthy, and sustainable manner, Pham Binh Minh, Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, said at a banquet held in Hanoi on Thursday to celebrate 65 years of the two countries’ diplomatic ties.

-- The Ministries of Public Security of Vietnam and Laos have agreed to intensify cooperation in the fight against organized, trans-national and hi-tech crimes as well as human trafficking and drug smuggling, according to what was discussed during a talk between Vietnamese Minister Tran Dai Quang and Lao Acting Minister Somkeo Silavong in Vientiane on Thursday.

-- The government cannot ban or prevent information from being publicized on the Internet, so the most important thing is that the government and state agencies must provide true, accurate, and timely information to gain the trust of the public, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said at a conference held in Hanoi on Thursday. 

Society

-- The 2014 Youth Volunteer Year proved to be a success, with a series of activities conducted across Vietnam demonstrating the youth’s dynamism in campaigns for community interests, including voluntary activities toward the country’s seas and islands amidst China’s illegal placement of an oil rig in Vietnamese waters from May to July of last year, the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union said at a conference in Hanoi on Thursday.

-- The main pipeline transporting treated water from the Da River Water Treatment Plant to Hanoi broke again on Thursday, causing approximately 70,000 households in the capital city to have no access to clean water for 12 hours. It was the 10^th time such an incident had happened to the pipeline in the last 35 months.

Business

-- Hashima Vietnam, a Japanese-owned affiliate of Japan’s Hashima Sewing Machine Corp., opened its a factory specializing in designing and producing automatic machines and spare parts for the apparel industry in the northern province of Ha Nam on Thursday. In the first phase, the factory is expected to annually generate around 2,500 products, including machines for garment companies and metal-detectors. 

-- Tax procedures have been reformed regularly in recent years, with simplified paperwork and policies, additional software, and tools supporting tax declaration now available, Hoang Thi Lan Anh, deputy head of the Reform Department under the General Department of Taxation, said at a workshop in Hanoi on Thursday.   

-- The Vietnam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines) is set to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in the first quarter of 2015, said Le Anh Son, general director of the state-owned firm, at a conference in Hanoi on Thursday to review its 2014 operations and set new targets for this year. Vinalines has signed a deal with the Saigon Securities Incorporation as a consultant to help prepare for the upcoming IPO.