Breakfast @ Tuoi Tre News - February 21

Check out the latest news in Vietnam today:

Politics

-- Vietnamese Party General Secretary To Lam met U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday morning (local time), during his three-day trip to Washington, D.C., to attend the inaugural meeting of the Gaza Board of Peace.

-- Vietnam has sent a congratulatory message to the ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea, expressing confidence that the political event would serve as a significant milestone guiding North Korea toward successfully implementing its development goals, the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Friday.

Economy

-- The Authority of Radio Frequency Management, under Vietnam’s Ministry of Science and Technology, has authorized Starlink Services Vietnam to deploy four ground gateway stations, marking a key step in bringing the U.S.-based satellite Internet service to the country.

Society

-- Rescue teams in Quang Tri Province recovered the bodies of two missing passengers on Friday, more than 24 hours after a boat capsized on the Gianh River during Tet, leaving four family members dead.

-- A four-seater car carrying three people plunged into a ravine after colliding with a parked motorcycle on a coastal mountain road in Khanh Hoa Province on Friday, leaving one woman seriously injured and prompting an emergency rescue operation, local authorities said the same day.

-- Thirteen people in Thanh Hoa Province were hospitalized with suspected food poisoning on Thursday after eating eggs from ornamental fish, authorities said, as health officials launched an investigation and warned the public about the risks of consuming unfamiliar aquatic products.

-- Traffic police in Dong Thap Province fined a bus driver and the vehicle owner more than VND98 million (US$3,790) on Friday after discovering the bus was carrying 55 passengers, exceeding its legal capacity by 13, and operating off its licensed route, authorities said.

Ho Chi Minh City

-- Traffic police in Ho Chi Minh City reported on Friday that more than 1,700 cases of alcohol-related violations were handled over the first three days of the Lunar New Year.

-- Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City handled more than 170,000 passengers on Friday, the fourth day of the Lunar New Year festival, setting a record in over a decade.

Travel

-- Nha Trang received its first cruise ship of the 2026 Lunar New Year on Friday, as the Italian-flagged Costa Serena brought more than 3,500 international tourists to Khanh Hoa Province, marking a strong start to the beach destination’s cruise tourism season.