The 13th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam elected State President To Lam as General Secretary for the 2021-26 term at a meeting on Saturday.

At a press conference following the meeting, Lai Xuan Mon, deputy head of the Party’s Commission for Information and Education, announced that To Lam was elected General Secretary of the 13th Party Central Committee with unanimous support. 

General Secretary To Lam will oversee the responsibilities of the Party Central Committee, Politburo, and Secretariat, in accordance with the powers and duties prescribed by the Politburo.

Earlier, the Politburo had also assigned President To Lam to manage the workload of the Party Central Committee, Politburo, and Secretariat while priority was given to former Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s health and medical treatment.

Trong passed away in Hanoi on July 19 at the age of 80.

To Lam, previously Minister of Public Security, was elected state president for the 2021-26 term by the National Assembly on May 22.

As Vietnam’s State President, To Lam made his first foreign visits to Laos and Cambodia on July 11-13, underscoring his commitment to prioritizing relations with these neighboring countries.

He also presided over the state-level welcoming ceremony for Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Presidential Palace in Hanoi on June 20, which included a 21-gun salute. 

During this visit, the two leaders held talks and witnessed the signing of 11 documents, including a plan for a nuclear science and technology research center in Vietnam.

Party and State leaders congratulate Vietnam's Party General Secretary, State President To Lam (L, 3rd) on his new post following a meeting of the 13th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam in Hanoi, August 3, 2024. Photo: Vietnam News Agency

To Lam, 67, hails from Van Giang District in northern Hung Yen Province. 

He is a law professor with a PhD degree. 

He has been a member of the Party Central Committee since the 11th term in January 2011, a member of the Politburo since the 12th term in January 2016, and a National Assembly deputy for the 14th and 15th tenures.

He began his career in 1979 at the Directorate for Political Protection I of the General Department of Security under the Ministry of Public Security, eventually serving as its deputy director and then director. 

In 2010, he was appointed General Director of the General Department of Security 1.

In August 2010, To Lam was appointed Deputy Minister of Public Security and became Minister of Public Security in April 2016.

In early 2019, he was promoted to the rank of general by late General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong.

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