Conservative General Named New President of Vietnam

HANOI — Vietnam’s National Assembly chose conservative Gen. Le Duc Anh as president Wednesday in what observers said underlines the Communist Party’s determination to keep a firm grip on economic reforms.

The 72-year-old Anh, Vietnam’s top general, was the only candidate and received all of the secret ballots cast by the 392-seat Assembly, the state-run Voice of Vietnam radio said.

The general is a battle-hardened soldier and one of the most powerful men in Vietnam, controlling foreign policy, defense and internal security for the ruling Communist Party, although few ordinary people could recognize him in a photograph.

Hanoi intellectuals say that Anh, whose election was widely expected, represents old-guard conservatives in the party and the military who see rapid reforms as a threat to stability.

Vo Van Kiet, Vietnam’s reformist premier, is expected to be reelected by the Assembly to a five-year term today.

Diplomats said the combination of reformer Kiet and conservative Anh will probably result in the government’s continued pursuit of market-oriented economic reforms but under continued tight political control of the party.

The popular Kiet, 69, is a southerner who has pushed for Vietnam to open up to the outside world and has helped forge new economic and political ties with non-socialist countries.

The National Assembly also elected Nong Duc Manh, the youngest man in the Politburo and its only ethnic minority member, as its new chairman Wednesday. He was also the sole candidate.