Don’t miss what is in the news today:

Politics

— The 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, which is being held in Hanoi from January 25 to February 2, has received 298 congratulatory letters and messages from 149 parties, six regional and international organizations, 93 friendship and people’s organizations, 25 diplomatic delegations, and 16 individuals from 92 countries.

Society

— Vietnam reported nine new community cases of COVID-19 in Hanoi and the northern provinces of Hai Duong, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong and Bac Ninh on Friday morning, bringing the patient tally to 1,651.

— Following the record number of domestic cases of COVID-19 reported in the northern region on Thursday, the Ministry of Transport ordered the chairpeople of the People's Committees of Quang Ninh and Hai Duong, based on the actual situation of the local COVID-19 outbreaks, to issue appropriate decisions on suspending, delaying, postponing, or adjusting the frequency and the operation of passenger transport routes. Meanwhile, the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport decided to suspend all road transport activities between the southern metropolis and the two aforementioned provinces. In the same move, Hanoi’s Department of Transport ordered the suspension of passenger transport by road between the capital city and Quang Ninh.

— Vietnam Airlines, Pacific Airlines, and VASCO have beefed up measures of COVID-19 prevention and control on their entire flight networks following the resurgence of the viral disease in Vietnam.

— Vietnam has earned three awards in the latest round of the Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER), an international program that funds scientists and engineers in developing countries who partner with US government-funded researchers to address global development challenges, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Business

— Vietnam is likely the top-performing Asian economy in 2020 -- a feat that was achieved without a single quarter of economic contraction at a time when many economies globally were weighed down by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Vietnamese Government Portal. 

Lifestyle

— The French Institute in Vietnam (L'Espace) will offer free screenings of French films with Vietnamese subtitles at websites danet.vn or fptplay.vn, as well as through applications DANET and FPT Play with no time limit from Friday to February 28 during an event called “Cine-Tet: Nouvel An, Nouveaux Film” (Cine-Tet: New Year, New Film).

World news

— The United States has found its first cases of a potent coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa, health officials in the state of South Carolina said on Thursday (local time), according to Reuters.

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