Catch up on the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh arrived in Tokyo on Friday afternoon, commencing his four-day trip to Japan for the Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation and bilateral activities at the invitation of Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio.

Society

-- Police in Phu Tho Province, northern Vietnam have announced that they will auction over 23 metric tons of rare earths which had previously been seized in an illegal mining and trading case with a starting price of more than VND1.4 billion (US$57,900).

-- Dozens of public offices and headquarters in Ho Chi Minh City now stand abandoned after the city established Thu Duc City and merged several wards in 2021.

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport has issued a dispatch asking relevant units to suspend all works including digging up roads and pavements from December 31 to January 1 next year to ensure the safety of commuters during the upcoming New Year holiday.

Lifestyle

-- More than 2,000 Vietnamese and foreign runners joined a forest trail run that kicked off in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong on Friday, reported the Vietnam News Agency.

-- Renowned American boy band Maroon 5 had a one-hour rehearsal on Friday night for their public performance at the 8Wonder Winter Festival, which will take place on Phu Quoc Island off Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam on Saturday evening.

-- Residents and foreign tourists flocked to Ba Kieu Temple in Hanoi on Friday night to enjoy the northwestern region’s traditional dances and music performances, as part of the opening ceremony of the Dien Bien Tourism and Culture Week in Hanoi lasting until Sunday.

-- Vietnamese beauty Le Nguyen Ngoc Hang won the second runner-up title of the Miss Intercontinental 2023 during the finale held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt on Saturday morning (Vietnam time).

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!