Catch up on the news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his Czech counterpart Petr Fiala declared the upgrading of the Vietnam-Czechia relations to a strategic partnership during their talks in Prague on Monday.

-- Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, his spouse, and a high-ranking delegation arrived in Switzerland on Monday evening, beginning a business trip to the European country through Thursday, including attending the 55th Annual Meeting of the WEF in Davos and engaging in bilateral activities.

Society

-- Police in Dong Hoa Town, Phu Yen Province, located in south-central Vietnam, reported on Monday that they had raided and cracked down on an illegal weapon producing unit, confiscating one grenade, six firearms, 2,404 rounds, among others.

-- The People’s Court in District 4, Ho Chi Minh City on Monday sentenced a 41-year-old man to one year in prison for violently assaulting a young female motorcyclist following a minor traffic collision late last year.

-- Authorities in Tra Vinh Province, southern Vietnam discovered 10 rectangular packages measuring some 400 grams each, suspected to be drugs, drifting to the coast in Duyen Hai Town.

Business

-- The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Natural Resources and Environment has guided Mercedes-Benz Vietnam Co. Ltd., a joint venture between world-renowned carmaker Mercedes-Benz Group AG and Vietnam’s Saigon Transportation Mechanical Corporation, to submit necessary documents so that the department can proceed with the land lease extension procedure for the company. A car assembly factory in Go Vap District, Ho Chi Minh City of the company has had its land lease extended by five years, starting April 14 this year.

Lifestyle

-- Nearly 100 Polish tourists experienced Vietnam’s Tet celebrations at a restaurant in District 1, Ho Chi Minh City on Monday evening. They enjoyed traditional Tet dishes, learned about Tet culture, and received lucky money.

World News

-- “An emboldened Donald Trump declared that 'America's decline is over' as he reclaimed the presidency on Monday, promising a crackdown on illegal immigration and portraying himself as a savior chosen by God to rescue a faltering nation,” according to Reuters.

-- “Paleontologists in Peru on Monday unveiled the 9-million-year-old fossil of a relative of the great white shark that once inhabited the waters of the southern Pacific Ocean, where it liked to devour sardines,” Reuters reported.

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