Read what is in the news today:

Politics

— Vietnam chaired the first video conference of the ASEAN Coordinating Council Working Group on Public Health Emergencies (ACCWG-PHE), during which participating officials from ten Southeast Asian nations agreed to coordinate in coping with the impacts of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and maintain an open market to facilitate commerce and investment as well as securing social security.

— Japan pledges to assist Vietnam in dealing with the COVID-19 epidemic by offering aid worth at least 200 million Japanese yen (US$1.86 million) via international organizations, Japanes Minister of Foreign Affairs Motegi Toshimitsu told Vietnam's foreign minister Pham Binh Minh during a phone talk on Tuesday.

Society

— Vietnam confirmed five new COVID-19 patients, all Vietnamese nationals, on early Wednesday morning, bringing the national tally to 212, including 35 cases that can be traced to Bach Mai Hospital in Hanoi.

— The Ministry of Transport has asked all provincial and municipal transport departments to consult their respective administrations about banning all four-wheeled commercial passenger vehicles for 15 days, from April 1 to 15, in line with the nationwide social distancing order.

— All domestic passenger flights in Vietnam will be temporarily halted from April 1 to 15 except for two two-way flights daily between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, and one two-way flight daily connecting each of the two cities with Da Nang, the Ministry of Transport has announced.

— Passenger railway transport in Vietnam will be limited to two trips per day, from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City and back, from April 1 to 15.

— Police in Ho Chi Minh City announced on Tuesday they had last week busted a drug ring transporting narcotics from Cambodia to the southern metropolis and confiscated 9.9 kilograms of meth, 4.57 kilograms of ketamine, and 4,322 pills of ecstasy.

Business

— The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade has assured that all markets, supermarkets, and stores are allowed to remain in operation during the implementation of nationwide social distancing from April 1 to 15, with sufficient supplies of food and other necessities for all citizens.

Education

— The Ministry of Education and Training on Tuesday issued instructions on streamlining the teaching curricula across all subjects for middle schools and high schools in the second semester of the current academic year, as schools nationwide have been closed since February due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

World News

— The novel coronavirus has infected over 856,300 people and killed more than 42,000 globally, according to Ministry of Health statistics.

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