China's Xinhua News Agency reported that the 13th National Party Congressconcluded on February 1 after eight days of working. Delegates agreed on severalgoals and tasks for the country’s future development, including making Vietnam amodern industrialised country with upper-middle incomes by 2030 and a developedcountry with high incomes by 2045.
“In the 2021-2025 period, Vietnam will strive to achieve an annual GDP growthrate of between 6.5 percent and 7 percent,” Xinhua reported.
It quoted Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as sayingin his closing remarks that: “Never before has our nation had the fortune, strength,position, and prestige it has today.” He also pledged that the CPV Central Committeewill unite to continuously improve its leadership capacity, and strive to weatherall difficulties to promote “the glorious renovation cause” in order to serve thecountry and meet the expectations of the entire party and the Vietnamese people.
Malaysia’s major news outlets also covered the re-election of Trong as the Party General Secretary and the results of the Politburo and CPV Central Committee’s Secretariat elections.The Star said that Trong and other newly-elected leaders will face the immediatetask of reviving the country’s export-dependent economy amid the global pandemicand must also manage external challenges.
Free Malaysia Today described the Party General Secretary as spearheadinga “blazing furnace” crackdown on corruption over the last five years, while Malaysiakinihighlighted the election of new leaders.
Japan’s Asia Nikkei said the CPV decided on January 31 to give Party GeneralSecretary Nguyen Phu Trong a third term as the country’s top leader. Trong, itsaid, has been credited for stably managing State affairs, including the containmentof the novel coronavirus and the management of the anti-corruption campaign.
It quoted Le Hong Hiep, a fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore,as saying that Vietnam will maintain its current foreign policy trajectory, pursuingstrategic diversification and international economic integration while deepeningties with major powers and supporting the role of ASEAN.
Large media outlets in Hong Kong (China) also touched on the anti-corruptioncampaign the CPV is running, saying that Trong will further intensify the campaignin the time to come./.