Elected by parliament, he takes over from Tô Lâm who became party secretary (the most senior post in the country) after the death of Phú Trọng. The goal is to maintain political stability in the country at a time of an internal power struggle and anti-corruption campaign. In his first speech, Cường promised to boost defence and an independent, multilateral foreign policy.
The court found the real estate tycoon guilty of embezzlement. In the first trial concluded in April, the judges had imposed the death penalty, against which an appeal is pending. Hanoi has handed down over 2,000 death sentences in recent decades with more than 400 executions.
Tech giants plan to invest heavily in South East Asia, boosting regional economies, from Singapore to Malaysia. Demand is expected to grow by about 20 per cent per year for the next five to seven years. Microsoft has already pledged over two billion dollars in Malaysia for cloud infrastructure and AI.
Despite being granted refugee status by UNHCR, the court granted Y Quynh Bdap's extradition request from Hanoi. The activist has filed an appeal and a new asylum request with the Canadian embassy. The ambiguous attitude of Thailand, which opens its doors to temporary reception but is not a signatory to the UN Convention, offers no real guarantees.
At the Angelus, the pontiff expressed his closeness to the people affected by Typhoon Yagi and the families of Israeli hostages found killed in Gaza a few days ago. Francis mentioned meeting the mother of one of them. “[L]et the negotiations continue, and let peaceful solutions be found!” he said. He also urged the faithful to ask, “Who is Jesus for you?”
Other Southeast Asian countries have also been affected. Flood waters reach the altar in the cathedral, diocese of Chang Rai, Thailand, the bishop said. Telecommunications and travel are still haphazard in large parts of the region.
