Good morning from Vietnam!

Politics

-- Le Hai Binh, spokesperson of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Thursday warned China not to resort to force in resolving maritime disputes, in response to Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan’s call on Tuesday for preparation for a "people's war at sea.”

Business

-- The first satellite mobile service in Vietnam was inaugurated on Thursday in Hanoi as Vietnam Posts and Telecommunication Group (VNPT) and Hanoi-based mobile network operator VinaPhone introduced their ‘VinaPhone-S’ service offering stable connection across all parts of the country.

-- A US$3.7 billion expressway connecting Hanoi and Vientiane will be constructed and put to use by 2025, Vietnam and Laos’ transport ministries announced on Thursday at a meeting in the north-central Vietnamese city of Vinh.

Society

-- Chairwoman of Vietnam’s lawmaking National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan on Thursday vowed to tackle wasteful construction projects in the country at a meeting with the electorate in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho.

-- Hanoi police on Thursday promised to look closely into the collapse early morning the same day of an old house in the capital that killed two and injured nine others.

-- ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,’ the eighth book of British novelist J. K. Rowling’s fantasy series Harry Potter which is the script of a play having the same name, has sold more than 6,000 copies in the Vietnamese market after five days of sales, according to the book’s official distributor in Vietnam.

-- Vietnamese-American hostess and television personality Jeannie Mai on Thursday spoke at the American Center in Ho Chi Minh City in front of a crowd of around 250 youths to share her success story.

Education

-- Public schools in Ho Chi Minh City will no longer be allowed to run extra classes, starting the upcoming school year, Director of the municipal Department of Education and Training Le Hong Son said in a query session on Thursday with the People’s Council.

Sports

-- The result of Thursday’s final match between Vietnam and Thailand’s women’s soccer teams, who competed for a regional championship, sparked controversy after Vietnam’s match-concluding penalty goal was denied by the referee.

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