Read what is in the news today:

Politics

— Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Binh Minh on Sunday sent a message of condolences to Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi over an Indonesian plane crash off the coast of Jakarta on Saturday.

— Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong has sent a message of congratulations to Kuwait’s Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al‑Ahmad Al‑Jaber Al‑Sabah on the occasion of the 45th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and Kuwait (January 10, 1976), according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Society

— A 24-year-old Vietnamese woman repatriated from Japan was confirmed as the latest case of COVID-19 on Sunday, bringing the national tally to 1,514 infections, with 1,361 recoveries and 35 virus-related deaths.

— Vietnam’s COVID-19 patient No. 1440 hailing from the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long has tested positive for the coronavirus for eight times, despite experiencing no symptoms after 16 days of treatment.

— Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc attended the ground-breaking ceremony of the expansion project of Hoa Binh Hydropower Plant in northern Hoa Binh Province to increase its total capacity to 2,400MW by 2023 on Sunday morning.

— Ho Chi Minh City’s construction, natural resources and environment, and planning and investment departments have thrown their support behind the municipal Department of Transport’s proposal to the People’s Committee of launching five electric bus routes in the city.

— A male tourist slipped and fell while climbing a high rock cliff, widely known as the 'death cliff,' at Ma Pi Leng Pass in Lai Lung Commune, Meo Vac District, northern Ha Giang Province to take pictures on Sunday. He was lucky enough to have merely sustained some wounds.

— Construction of the National Innovation Center (NIC) began in Hanoi on Saturday along with the opening of an international exhibition displaying leading innovations, according to the online newspaper of the Vietnamese government VGP News.

Lifestyle

— The salt-making craft of Bac Lieu Province, located in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region, has been recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage site, according to VGP News.

— A ceremony to mark the fifth anniversary of Ho Chi Minh City Book Street establishment (January 9, 2016) on Nguyen Van Binh Street in District 1 was held on Saturday.

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