Conversations on Vietnam Development
nbcnews.com May 19, 2019, 12:00 AM GMT+7
Passengers will be able to travel 680 miles, between Tokyo and Sapporo, in less than four hours.
Japan’s next-generation bullet train reached speeds of 198 miles per hour on a test run on May 16.Jiji Press / AFP – Getty Images
The picture of a “bullet train” speeding past Mount Fuji is an iconic image of modern Japan.
Tiếp tục đọc “Debut the bullet train that rivals airplane flying times – year 2019 Japan”
CBSnews.com On the eve of his visit to the United States, China’s president, Jiang Zemin, sat down for a rare interview with Mike Wallace.
In a wide-ranging and surprisingly frank interview, Jiang talked about many topics, including relations between the United States and China, Tiananmen Square and American morals.
Jiang Zemin (born August 17, 1926, Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, China—died November 30, 2022, Shanghai, China) was a Chinese official who was general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP; 1989–2002) and president of China (1993–2003).
Jiang joined the CCP in 1946 and graduated from Shanghai Jiao Tong University the following year with a degree in electrical engineering. He worked in several factories as an engineer before receiving further technical training in the Soviet Union about 1955. He subsequently headed technological research institutes in various parts of China. In 1980 Jiang became vice minister of the state commission on imports and exports. Two years later he became vice minister of the electronics industry and from 1983 to 1985 was its minister. He had meanwhile become a member of the Central Committee of the CCP in 1982. Named mayor of Shanghai in 1985, he joined the Political Bureau in 1987.
Footage of an interview of Lee Kuan Yew, the Prime Minister of Singapore, conducted by Australian and British journalists.
Quote: “If the British withdraw, I am prepared to go on with the Austrialians and the New Zealanders. But, I am not prepared to go on with Americans. ….I think they are highly intelligent, often well-meaning, people, and some of their leaders like Mr. Kennedy, the late President, had signs, of growing greatness, depth. But, by and large, the administration lacks depth. But, by and wisdom which comes out of an accumulation of knowledge of human beings and human situations over a long period of time. That is lacking, and it is not their fault what have they got? Three, four hundred years of history, and they have become a nations just recently. I will tell you this. I have had three experiences, only three experiences, with the Americans. And, they did not intend any harm in each one of them. But, the tragedy was; they did real harm.”
Lee Kuan Yew was 44 at the time. He revealed an attempt in 1960 by an agent of the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to bribe an official of the Singaporean Special Branch to report on the activities of the Singaporean state. He also revealed that the American agent was arrested and threatened with prosecution. But the case did not come to open court. He told the journalists that he sent a message to the American government, which he accused of “lacking finesse”, to give Singapore $100 million dollars for economic development. However, the Americans responded by offering Lee and his political Party $10 Million. He refused.
Read full interview: National Archive of Singapore TRANSCRIPT OF AN INTERVIEW BY FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS WITH THE PRIME MINISTER OF SINGAPORE, MR. LEE KUAN YEW, HELD AT TV SINGAPURA AT 1130 HOURS ON 30TH AUGUST
13 March 2026, London: Military tensions in West Asia are beginning to disrupt maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, raising serious concerns for global energy markets, fertilizer supplies and vulnerable economies. In a rapid assessment titled “Strait of Hormuz disruptions: Implications for global trade and development,” UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has highlighted the potential risks posed by interruptions in one of the world’s most critical trade corridors.
The Strait of Hormuz carries nearly one quarter of global seaborne oil trade, along with large volumes of liquefied natural gas and fertilizers. Any disruption in this narrow passage therefore has immediate consequences for global energy prices, maritime transport costs and agricultural input supply chains.
Imagine the escalating conflict between the US, Israel and Iran unfolding in a world powered mostly by wind, solar and batteries rather than oil and gas.
In today’s fossil-fuelled economy, markets react to Iran’s attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Gulf and the threat to close the strait of Hormuz. Oil prices jump. Governments brace for inflation. Around a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes through the narrow corridor, linking the Gulf states to the wider world. When tensions rise there, energy markets react instantly.
But in a world where most energy is generated domestically from renewables, would the same threat trigger the same global shock? Would instability in the Gulf still lead to more expensive food and fuel across the world? Or would the economic aftershocks look very different?
To understand what’s at stake, we need to first look at how today’s energy system is structured.
For about a century, the global economy has depended on fossil fuels produced by a few producers in the Middle East. Chokepoints like the strait of Hormuz carry enormous strategic weight.
Tiếp tục đọc “How would the Iran crisis play out in a world powered by renewables not fossil fuels?”
“Steady and pragmatic decarbonisation, rapid clean-energy expansion combined with cautious emission targets, continued coal use to protect energy security and industrial growth.”
China’s leadership has published a draft of its 15th five-year plan setting the strategic direction for the nation out to 2030, including support for clean energy and energy security.
The plan sets a target to cut China’s “carbon intensity” by 17% over the five years from 2026-30, but also changes the basis for calculating this key climate metric.
Tiếp tục đọc “What does China’s 15th ‘five-year plan’ mean for climate change?”
reliefweb.int 26 Feb 2026
Studied Countries: Vietnam, Benin, Brazil, Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the Philippines, Togo, Uganda
Groundbreaking research from Plan International that has documented girls from birth for eighteen years reveals that globally, girls’ lives have improved significantly over the past two decades but identifies these gains are now at risk with the next wave of challenges approaching.
With improved access to education, girls are dreaming bigger and new laws protecting them from child marriage means they have broader choices in shaping their futures. But significant barriers – including widespread gender-based violence and the ever-worsening impacts of climate change – still stand in the way of equality.
nhandan.vn Chủ Nhật, ngày 08/02/2026
Năm 2025, được ghi nhận là một trong những năm đặc biệt, có diễn biến thiên tai cực đoan, đặt ra áp lực lớn đối với công tác chỉ đạo, điều hành. Tuy nhiên, nhờ cách làm mới, chuyển từ ứng phó sự vụ sang chiến lược dài hạn; lấy khoa học công nghệ, chuyển đổi số làm nền tảng, đã giúp giảm đáng kể tác hại do thiên tai gây ra.
Theo Cục trưởng Cục Quản lý đê điều và Phòng, chống thiên tai (Bộ Nông nghiệp và Môi trường) Phạm Đức Luận: Tại Việt Nam, trong năm 2025, thiên tai đã gây ra những con số thiệt hại lớn, với 468 người chết và mất tích, 741 người bị thương, thiệt hại kinh tế ước tính gần 98.700 tỷ đồng. Đó không chỉ là tổn thất về vật chất, mà còn là những hệ lụy lâu dài đối với đời sống và sinh kế của hàng triệu người dân. Trong năm, đã chứng kiến những cơn bão chồng bão, mưa lớn vượt ngưỡng kỷ lục, sạt lở đất kinh hoàng xảy ra ở nhiều vùng, miền… Trong bối cảnh đó, song song với ứng phó, công tác phòng ngừa và kiểm soát rủi ro thiên tai được đặc biệt chú trọng. Cục Quản lý đê điều và Phòng, chống thiên tai đã tham mưu hoàn thiện cơ chế chỉ đạo phòng, chống thiên tai, không để gián đoạn trong giai đoạn cả nước kiện toàn tổ chức vận hành theo mô hình chính quyền địa phương 2 cấp.
But understanding how means looking beyond their partnership
DIIS.dk DIIS Policy Brief 9 July 2025
Sino-Russian Arctic cooperation is real but limited – and should not distract from the broader strategic challenges each country poses individually. While the partnership merits attention, some aspects are more symbolic than substantive, with Russia ultimately controlling the pace and direction.
Media narratives often highlight the growing alignment between China and Russia in the Arctic and the potential threat this poses to other states. Yet the partnership remains constrained by diverging priorities, Russia’s wariness of Chinese influence, and China’s reluctance to expose itself to sanctions or engage in risky ventures.
At the same time Russia’s increasing dependence on China since its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has given Beijing opportunities to pursue deeper access to the Russian Arctic on its own terms and in areas that align with its long-term objectives. Rather than engaging broadly, China is selective in how and where it invests or participates – a dynamic that could intensify underlying frictions between the two even as global geopolitical shifts continue to draw them closer in the region.
Global warming is heating up the Arctic, and global powers like the United States, Russia and China are manoeuvring to stake a claim to the resources under its melting ice. Some experts say the region, once known as an exception – an island of international cooperation in the midst of geopolitical struggles – is becoming the site of a second cold war.
The Arctic may seem like a frozen and desolate environment where nothing ever changes. But the climate of this unique and remote region can be both an early indicator of the climate of the rest of the Earth and a driver for weather patterns across the globe. William Chapman explains why scientists often describe the Arctic as the “canary in the coal mine” when it comes to climate change
Jul 30, 2025 #AJStartHere #CubanMissileCrisis #IsraelIranTensions
Israel and the US – both nuclear-armed states – recently attacked Iran. They said it was to prevent Iran getting a nuclear weapon, something Iran denies it’s trying to do.
What determines which countries can, and can’t, have nuclear weapons? And are we seeing a new nuclear race?
Chapters:
01:09 – How the Cuban Missile Crisis led to a new nuclear order.
01:58 – The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and the nine nuclear-armed states.
04:49 – The key factors that affect a country’s calculation on nukes.
05:47 – Security: do nuclear weapons make a country more, or less, safe?
07:22 – The US nuclear umbrella – can it still be trusted?
08:10 – Do nuclear weapons enhance a country’s status?
09:40 – What’s going on with Iran?
14:32 – Who gets to police the global nuclear order?
14:52 – How the nine nuclear-armed states are increasing their spending on nukes.
vneconomy.vn LS.Lê Quang Vinh (*) 12/07/2021,
Giả mạo sinh học trong nông nghiệp được các nhà khoa học định nghĩa là hiện tượng ăn cắp tri thức truyền thống, đa dạng sinh học và nguồn gen thuộc về cộng đồng bản địa ở lãnh thổ A để xác lập quyền độc quyền hợp pháp dưới dạng sáng chế (pa-tăng) ở lãnh thổ B với chủ ý lấy tên gốc ban đầu của giống cây trồng đã biết.
Chống giả mạo sinh học vì thế được xem là cuộc chiến cam go mà nông sản Việt có thể sẽ phải đối mặt trong thời gian tới.
Năm 2018, bà con nông dân ở huyện đảo Lý Sơn đã phải lên tiếng bày tỏ quan ngại sâu sắc về việc nhiều tiểu thương, doanh nghiệp mạo danh tỏi Lý Sơn. Điều này được xem là “ảnh hưởng nghiêm trọng” đến danh tiếng đặc sản nổi tiếng của Lý Sơn, một loại tỏi có hương vị cay dịu nhẹ chứ không cay nồng như các loại tỏi khác được trồng ở 3 xã An Bình, An Hải và An Vĩnh thuộc huyện đảo Lý Sơn, tỉnh Quảng Ngãi. Vì thế, sau rất nhiều nỗ lực, ngày 29/6/2020, tỏi Lý Sơn chính thức được bảo hộ dưới hình thức chỉ dẫn địa lý theo Quyết định 2421/QĐ-SHTT của Cục trưởng Cục Sở hữu trí tuệ.
Medicines and cosmetics use substances derived from nature. But Bioprospecting can turn into biopiracy. More and more companies are patenting natural ingredients making billions. It can come at a cost to the environment and traditional communities living in biodiversity-rich regions.
Tiếp tục đọc “What is biopiracy? And how a new UN treaty tries to get rid of it”
There are tankers that exploit gaps in international law by fraudulently registering under flags of convenience or assuming false identities to avoid enforcement. Indeed, approximately 100+ false-flagged tankers now operate with limited scrutiny in critical regions like the Indian Ocean and South China Sea, bringing new impetus to the questions for coastal states: do they have the legal right to act, and should they exercise that right?
Estonia’s recent boarding of the tanker Kiwala has put these questions in the spotlight. Acting within its territorial sea, the Estonian Navy relied on the powers granted under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to intervene when a vessel’s passage is no longer ‘innocent’. The vessel was known to be operating under a false flag — a clear violation of international shipping norms.
Tiếp tục đọc “Dark fleet tankers: Estonia’s case study warning for Southeast Asia”
CVD 