Key Events * HCMC Finalizes Key Party Positions Before National Congress; * Vietnam Airlines Confirms Massive Data Breach Affecting 7.3 Million
Trịnh Công Sơn and the Music of Exile and Peace In his final collection of essays, the Hue-born writer Hoàng
The case of the silver pheasants involving Thái Khắc Thành offers an excellent insight into the practice of legal reasoning,
Key Events
Vietnam’s largest economic hub has finalized its new party leadership as it prepares to send the largest delegation in the country to the Communist Party’s 14th National Congress, scheduled for early next year.
At the first session of the city’s new Party Committee on Oct. 14, the Politburo announced its decision to appoint 110 members to the Standing Committee, including seven standing members—an increase of two compared to the previous term. The meeting marked a significant step in the city’s political restructuring following recent administrative and territorial changes.
General Secretary Tô Lâm personally attended and presided over the opening session, a gesture that mirrored his appearance at the central government’s Party Committee meeting one day earlier, on Oct. 13. His presence underscored the importance the national leadership places on the political consolidation of HCMC ahead of the 2026 national congress.
Among the 110 Party delegates, 80 were selected as official representatives to attend the upcoming 14th National Congress—more than any other locality in Việt Nam. This reflects both the city’s political prominence and its economic weight in the national landscape.
Trần Lưu Quang was reappointed by the Politburo to serve another term as secretary of the HCMC Party Committee for 2025–2030, ensuring continuity in leadership as the city navigates new administrative and economic challenges.
Joining him in the top ranks is Lê Quốc Phong, former secretary of the Đồng Tháp Provincial Party Committee, who has been appointed as the city’s new standing deputy secretary—a role widely viewed as crucial to policy coordination and internal party management.
In his address, General Secretary Tô Lâm described the recent merger of Hồ Chí Minh City with the provinces of Bình Dương and Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu as a “historic turning point,” creating Việt Nam’s largest metropolitan region both in scale and population. The expanded urban entity is expected to play a decisive role in national development, serving as the economic engine and model for administrative reform.
The timing of the city’s Party Congress aligns with similar meetings taking place across 34 provinces and municipalities nationwide. These local congresses are part of a broader political calendar aimed at finalizing personnel and policy directions ahead of the 14th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, slated for early 2026.
The renewed leadership in HCMC—anchored by the reappointment of Trần Lưu Quang and the elevation of Lê Quốc Phong—signals both continuity and controlled rejuvenation within the ruling structure.
The expanded delegation to the national congress also reflects the city’s heightened political leverage at a critical juncture when Việt Nam seeks to balance economic modernization with party discipline and centralized governance.
As the country’s largest contributor to GDP and a key hub for foreign investment, HCMC’s political stability and leadership decisions are expected to have a ripple effect across national policymaking. The party’s emphasis on “synchronous leadership” and “institutional harmony” indicates that local governance will continue to align closely with central directives under the new generation of leadership heading into the next decade.
For the second time in a decade, Vietnam Airlines has suffered a major cybersecurity breach, exposing the personal data of millions of passengers—yet once again, no one has been held accountable.
On Oct. 14, the national flag carrier confirmed that personal information from its customer database had been compromised. According to Have I Been Pawned (HIBP), a reputable international database tracking global data breaches, roughly 7.3 million customer records were accessed by hackers through Vietnam Airlines’ intermediary platform, Salesforce.
The breach reportedly enabled the attackers to harvest an additional 23 million data entries between Nov. 23, 2020, and June 20, 2025. The leaked information includes customers’ full names, phone numbers, dates of birth, and membership identification numbers from the airline’s frequent flyer program.
Cybersecurity analysts suggest that the same hacker group may also be responsible for the September breach at Vietnam’s National Credit Information Center (CIC), where 160 million records were stolen and later traded on dark web markets.
Despite the scale of the exposure, Vietnam Airlines took nearly four months to publicly acknowledge the incident. By the time of its announcement, sensitive customer data had already been offered for sale across underground forums.
Instead of accepting direct responsibility, the airline pointed fingers at its “global technology partner,” Salesforce, implying that the U.S.-based company was to blame for the breach. Salesforce has not yet issued a public statement in response to the incident.
This marks Vietnam Airlines’ second large-scale cybersecurity incident in nine years. In 2016, the carrier’s systems were hacked by a group linked to China, resulting in the takeover of airport control displays, a massive system shutdown, and the delay of nearly 100 flights. That attack also exposed more than 410,000 passenger records and caused widespread chaos at major airports, including Hanoi’s Nội Bài and Ho Chi Minh City’s Tân Sơn Nhất.
The recurrence of such breaches raises serious concerns about the airline’s cybersecurity governance, oversight, and accountability mechanisms—particularly as Vietnam pushes for a deeper digital transformation across its state-owned enterprises.
While the company insists that “core flight operations remain unaffected,” experts warn that this latest breach reflects a systemic vulnerability within the country’s critical infrastructure, where reliance on third-party vendors and slow disclosure practices continue to endanger public trust and data security.
Vietnam Airlines has yet to clarify whether affected customers will be notified individually or offered any form of compensation. Meanwhile, cybersecurity watchdogs and consumer protection advocates are calling for independent investigations into both the breach and the airline’s delayed disclosure.
The Philippines has extended its temporary ban on rice imports from Việt Nam, inflicting a major setback on the country’s rice export industry—both in revenue and national pride.
The embargo, first imposed in September by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s administration, was initially set for 60 days as a measure to protect Filipino farmers during the peak harvest season. However, local media in Manila now report that the restriction will likely remain in place through the end of the year, with new import quotas and additional bans already planned for early 2026.
According to the latest projections, the Philippines intends to cap rice imports at 300,000 tons in January 2026, before reinstating another import suspension from February to April next year. The move underscores Manila’s renewed emphasis on domestic food security, even at the expense of regional trade partners.
Việt Nam, the world’s third-largest rice exporter, has been the Philippines’ biggest supplier for years. In August 2025 alone, Việt Nam exported more than 490,000 tons of rice to the Philippines—accounting for nearly 56.5% of its total rice export volume.
Since the ban took effect, Việt Nam’s rice exports have fallen to 466,800 tons, representing a loss of over US $200 million in export value. The downturn has sparked concern among Vietnamese exporters and policymakers, who warn that prolonged disruptions could destabilize the country’s agricultural sector and hurt rural livelihoods dependent on rice production.
Industry experts note that the decision also reflects shifting political and economic dynamics in the region. As global rice prices surged in recent months—driven by India’s export restrictions and climate-related supply shocks—countries such as the Philippines have tightened controls on imports to shield domestic markets from inflation and supply volatility.
In response, Việt Nam is now pivoting toward Africa, exploring alternative export destinations in markets such as Nigeria, Ghana, and Côte d’Ivoire, which have shown rising demand for affordable rice imports. Trade officials see these regions as crucial for diversifying Việt Nam’s export portfolio amid Manila’s increasingly protectionist stance.
The extended ban marks a difficult chapter for Việt Nam’s rice industry, long celebrated as a symbol of the country’s agricultural success. With its largest customer stepping back and new import limits looming, exporters face mounting pressure to adapt—either by expanding into new markets or by negotiating diplomatic channels to restore access to the Philippine market.
For now, the suspension underscores a sobering reality: Việt Nam’s once-reliable rice export boom is entering a period of turbulence, shaped as much by geopolitics and protectionism as by harvest yields and trade figures.
Asia Sentinel reports that since returning to office in January 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump has turned Việt Nam’s export-driven economy into his newest trade target.
His “reciprocal tariff” policy — a 20% duty on Vietnamese goods, doubled from April’s rate and far below the 46% once threatened — signals a sharp shift in Washington’s view of Hanoi: friend or not, everyone must play by America’s rules.
The White House has also imposed a 40% tariff on goods transshipped through Việt Nam — products that originate in China but are routed via Vietnamese factories to evade existing U.S. tariffs. The measure cuts to the heart of Vietnam’s manufacturing model, which relies heavily on assembling and rebranding Chinese components for export to the United States.
For Trump and his trade strategist Peter Navarro, the issue is fairness and leverage. Việt Nam’s exports to the U.S. have surged from $49 billion in 2018 to $136 billion in 2024, much of it tied to Chinese supply chains. Trump’s team argues that Hà Nội has been “playing both sides” — enjoying U.S. market access while depending on Beijing’s factories. The new tariff regime aims to break that dependence.
Việt Nam’s leaders know the stakes. Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyễn Sinh Nhật Tân confirmed that negotiators will head to Washington this fall to finalize a “reciprocal tariff” agreement. With the U.S. buying nearly 30% of Việt Nam’s total exports, any escalation could severely disrupt its fragile growth model, which depends more on low-cost assembly than high-value innovation.
For Hà Nội, the challenge is not only economic but also political. General Secretary Tô Lâm, facing his first major leadership test ahead of the 14th National Party Congress, must balance ties with both Beijing and Washington without appearing submissive to either. His recent high-profile visit to Pyongyang underscored Việt Nam’s search for strategic independence, but Trump’s tariffs have exposed how precarious that independence remains.
The upcoming talks in Washington represent more than a trade negotiation — they are at a strategic crossroads. Việt Nam must choose whether to double down on a China-linked export model or reform toward true economic autonomy. Trump’s message is unmistakable: the era of “cheap assembly diplomacy” is over, and Hanoi’s next move will reveal how much independence it can truly afford.
Newsweek reported that a Russian naval flotilla, including the frigate Marshal Shaposhnikov, the corvette Gremyashchy and the tanker Boris Butoma, arrived this week in the contested South China Sea, docking at the port of Đà Nẵng in Việt Nam for a “friendly visit,” citing the Russian Embassy. The deployment—monitored by Japan and timed amid U.S.–China rivalry in the region—underlines Moscow’s intent to expand its military presence in Asia while signalling possible support for China’s territorial claims. The ships will continue their Asia-Pacific mission after the port call, reinforcing Russia’s strategic outreach in Southeast Asia amid ongoing sanctions over the Ukraine war.
Việt Nam has been re-elected to the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2026–2028 term, becoming the only country in the Asia–Pacific region to secure consecutive memberships. The government hailed the result as international recognition of its commitment to human rights. However, international watchdogs note that Việt Nam’s rights record showed little improvement during its previous term, citing ongoing restrictions on freedom of expression, association, and religion. For the new term, Hanoi announced 12 specific human rights commitments, pledging to uphold them “in good faith.” Observers remain skeptical, saying Việt Nam’s real test lies in turning promises into genuine reform.
Police in Ninh Bình Province fined a 72-year-old man, identified as P.X.H, on Oct. 9 for sharing 20 Facebook posts allegedly “distorting and defaming the reputation of Party and state leaders.” Authorities said the posts violated Decree 15/2020/NĐ-CP, which governs online content deemed harmful to state interests. The administrative fine can range from 10 to 20 million đồng (approximately $400–$800). The case reflects Việt Nam’s continued crackdown on social media expression, where users face legal penalties for reposting or commenting on content critical of the government, even without original authorship or intent to spread false information.
More than 50,000 food and beverage businesses in Việt Nam closed in the first half of 2025, twice as many as during the same period last year. The closures reflect a sector-wide crisis driven by rising input costs, declining consumer spending, and sluggish post-pandemic recovery. Hà Nội and Hồ Chí Minh City, the country’s two economic hubs, have been hit the hardest. Nationwide, about 299,900 eateries remain in operation, a 7.1 percent drop from 323,000 at the end of 2024. Industry analysts warn that without targeted relief or cost reforms, Vietnam’s once-thriving F&B sector could face a prolonged downturn.
Việt Nam's economic ascent has been remarkable, marked by steady GDP growth, record-breaking foreign direct investment (FDI), and
At the 50th session of the National Assembly Standing Committee, Chairperson Trần Thanh Mẫn voiced his frustration with the government,
The 13th National Congress of the Communist Party in 2021 established the goal of transforming Việt Nam into a developed,
In 2025, Việt Nam witnessed a lightning-fast constitutional amendment process completed in just 43 days. The sweeping overhaul abolished the
Vietnam's independent news and analyses, right in your inbox.
