Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Thị Thu Hằng grants the licence to a Financial Times representative. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — The London-based Financial Times (FT) was granted a licence to reopen its permanent office in Việt Nam at a ceremony held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday.

At the event, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Lê Thị Thu Hằng commended the newspaper for its past contributions to connecting Việt Nam with the UK and the wider world. She expressed her confidence that with its professionalism, credibility, and coordination with the ministry and other Vietnamese Government bodies, the FT would continue to play a key role in strengthening bilateral ties and promoting Việt Nam’s image globally.

The Deputy Minister stressed that Việt Nam is entering a new era - the era of the nation's rise and hoped that the FT would help spread this message to readers in the UK and the world. She also affirmed the ministry’s commitment to supporting the newspaper and the British Embassy in enhancing the Việt Nam-UK strategic partnership.

Anantha Lakshmi, FT resident correspondent and head of its bureau in Hà Nội, noted that the newspaper has closely followed Việt Nam’s economic trajectory for many years.

Its decision to reopen a permanent presence in the country reflects Việt Nam’s growing importance in global affairs, she said.

She highlighted that amid increasing macroeconomic uncertainties and geopolitical tensions, many nations are seeking to diversify their economic ties by investing in Việt Nam. This makes it a particularly critical time to share the Southeast Asian country's story with the FT international readership.

One of the world’s leading newspapers specialising in finance and trade, the FT previously operated in Việt Nam from 1995 to 2000 and again from 2010 to 2022. With the reopening of its Việt Nam bureau, the number of foreign news agencies with a permanent presence in the country has now risen to 30. — VNS