Additional ‘special candidates’ have been considered and introduced by the Vietnamese Politburo to be up for re-election for next term’s four most important posts of leadership during the final Party meeting that opened in Hanoi on Monday.

Nguyen Phu Trong, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, is chairing the 14^th meeting of the 11^th Party Central Committee in the capital city to carry out the final phase of preparation for the upcoming National Party Congress.

The event is regarded as the final meeting of the 11^th Party Central Committee.

Following the opinions collected from the previous plenum, the Politburo has evaluated, considered and recommended extra ‘special candidates,’ who are members of the Party Central Committee of the current term, for re-election for the four key positions, namely the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Prime Minister, National Assembly Chairman, and State President, for the next tenure.

The meeting is of great significance as it will decide on the final preparations for the coming National Party Congress, requiring the participants’ high sense of responsibility to fulfill the agenda, theVietnam News Agency quoted Party General Secretary Trong as saying.

He also asked the delegates to thoroughly consider the Politburo’s proposals, and appraise and complete all the tasks listed in the agenda of the meeting, the news agency reported.

The plenary meeting is also slated to discuss the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

The TPP deal, reached on October 5 after marathon talks between the 12 party countries, aims to liberalize commerce in 40 percent of the world's economy. The participating nations are Peru, Chile, Mexico, Australia, Brunei, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, the U.S., and Vietnam.

The party countries are expected to officially sign the deal no later than the end of the first quarter of this year, after which their legislatures will begin the ratification process.

As the Politburo is set to submit a report on preparations for the TPP signature during the meeting, General Secretary Trong requested the committee members to carefully examine and discuss the results of the TPP negotiations and analyze the trade deal’s impacts on politics, national security, advantages and opportunities, difficulties, and challenges.

The 14^th meeting of the 11^th Party Central Committee will conclude on January 13 and is the final meeting to prepare for the National Party Congress, which will take place in Hanoi from January 20 to 28.