Vietnam prepares for key congress to choose new leader

Hanoi's streets were lined with flowers and banners on Sunday (January 18) as Vietnam's ruling Communist Party prepares to convene its 14th five-yearly congress Jan. 19-25 to select its top leader and set key targets until 2030.

Starting Tuesday, about 1,600 delegates representing more than 5 million party members will name around 200 officials to the Central Committee, which then picks the 17-19 members of the Politburo, the party's most powerful body, from which the general secretary is chosen.

Shortly after the congress, the Politburo will nominate the president, prime minister and speaker of parliament, whose appointments lawmakers must confirm.

Vietnam's leadership operates through collective decision-making, ensuring stability in economic and foreign policy since the Doi Moi reforms of the late 1980s, which transformed the war-torn, impoverished nation into one of Asia's fastest-growing economies. Foreign policy has centered on balancing ties with major powers — China, the United States and Russia — under the so-called "Bamboo Diplomacy."

Founded by Ho Chi Minh in 1930, the Communist Party took control of northern Vietnam in 1954 after French colonial rule ended. After the end of the war with the United States and the fall of Saigon in 1975, Vietnam was reunited under the party, which has since ruled unchallenged, allowing no opposition.

Production: Minh Nguyen, Thinh Nguyen/Reuters