Vietnam Appoints Army General Luong Cuong as President

‘Luong’s role may be more in maintaining Vietnam’s political stability and national security,’ Taiwanese professor of international affairs Sun Kuo-hsiang said.

Deputies attend the opening ceremony of the National Assembly's autumn session in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Oct. 23, 2017. Kham/Reuters

Vietnam’s ruling communist party elected army Gen. Luong Cuong as its new president on Oct. 21.

Luong, 67, replaced To Lam, who was appointed president in May and took over the more powerful post of ruling communist party secretary-general after the death in July of longtime party chief Nguyen Phu Trong, who ruled the Southeast Asian communist regime for 13 years.