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To Lam

(蘇林 )

To Lam
蘇林
To Lam: A career police officer for over four decades, he holds the rank of four-star General and is a Doctor of Law. He previously served as Vietnam’s Minister of Public Security from 2016 to 2024, and briefly as President in 2024.
Drivers wait to pump petrol into their vehicles in Hanoi on March 9. The cost of fuel in Vietnam has soared since the Iran war broke out late last month. Photo: AFP
Vietnam

Why Vietnam is leaning on Russia to weather energy turmoil

The energy shortage is ‘seriously threatening’ Vietnam’s growth objective and could dent the new leadership’s legitimacy, analysts say.

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China-Asean relations

China, Vietnam agree to live-fire drills in naval exercise boost

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China’s military drills

In joint patrols with China, Vietnam steers course between 2 powers

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China-Asean relations

Will Paracels dispute overshadow China-Vietnam drive for closer strategic ties?

Foreign, defence and public security ministers are to meet after images suggested China had started land reclamation work at Antelope Reef.

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The two countries have been working to strengthen ties in recent year. Photo: Shutterstock
Vietnam

Build fast, grow rich: To Lam’s blueprint for a rising Vietnam

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief is staking his legacy on 10 per cent growth, domestic megaprojects and an overseas charm offensive.

Vietnam

US to remove Vietnam from tech export control list, Hanoi says

Donald Trump’s reported pledge follows a massive US$37 billion spending spree by Vietnamese airlines on US aerospace contracts.

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Indonesia

Indonesia seals ‘great’ US trade deal, agrees to send 8,000 troops to Gaza

A US general said Jakarta will take a deputy commander role in the international stabilisation force in Gaza.

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Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto (centre) attends the inaugural meeting of the “Board of Peace” in Washington on Thursday. Photo: Getty Images/AFP
Vietnam

‘Everyone became greedy’: how Vietnam’s crypto gold rush ended in ruins

Vietnam’s crypto boom faces a harsh winter as investors lose fortunes, bankruptcies and lay-offs roil the industry.

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Vietnam

Opinion | Vietnam’s renewed nuclear power push faces formidable hurdles

Money, corruption, a lack of skilled staff and other factors may derail Hanoi’s goal of building its first nuclear power plant by 2031.

Vietnam

Friend or foe? Leaked Vietnamese military document labels US ‘belligerent’

While noting that ‘there is little risk of a war’, document urges vigilance to prevent the US from finding a pretext to invade Vietnam.

A US Marine honour guard holds the Vietnamese flag to welcome Defence Minister Phan Van Giang to the Pentagon on September 9, 2024. Photo: AP
Vietnam

Vietnam’s To Lam gets another 5-year term as Communist Party chief

Lam, who is also seeking to become president, has pledged to speed up growth in the export-reliant country.

Vietnam’s Communist Party chief To Lam (second right) holds up a bouquet after being re-elected to the position in Hanoi on Friday. Photo: VNA via AP
Vietnam

Efficiency or autocracy? What To Lam’s power grab will mean for Vietnam

The Communist Party’s general secretary is already behaving as if he ‘expects a mandate’ to add the presidency to his portfolio, experts say.

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US-Asean relations

Foot in the door or trap? Risks of Trump’s ‘Board of Peace’ for Southeast Asia

Nations are likely to try to avoid early commitment while steering clear of outright rejection to minimise US retaliation, analysts say.

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Vietnam

Vietnam’s To Lam seeks to tighten grip on power as party congress begins

The party’s general secretary is eyeing a dual role similar to Xi Jinping’s in neighbouring China.

Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam holds a meeting at the party’s central office in Hanoi on November 21, 2025. Photo: AFP
Vietnam

Vietnam’s To Lam may secure dual role as party and state head in rare move

The proposal is likely to be endorsed at a party congress scheduled to take place in Hanoi next month.

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Vietnam’s Communist Party chief To Lam. Photo: Reuters
Vietnam

Asian Angle | The hidden domestic agenda behind Vietnam’s baffling foreign policy

To Lam’s recent pilgrimages to North Korea and Cuba signal ideological loyalty, even as he pushes a hard-nosed reform agenda at home.

Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

Families facing heartbreaking uncertainty in aftermath of Hong Kong fire tragedy

Grief and desperation as relatives wait in anguish for news of loved ones missing in devastating Tai Po estate blaze.

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Vietnam

Letters | Vietnam should expect sterner tests of its diplomatic skills

Readers discuss Hanoi’s feat of securing strong partnerships with major powers, the task awaiting Taiwan’s new KMT chair, and the impact of strict rules on Hong Kong’s street life.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (right) shakes hands with visiting General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam To Lam in Downing Street, London, on October 29. Photo: Pool via AP
Vietnam

Pentagon chief Hegseth wants closer Vietnam ties amid arms dealings

The US has delivered three cutters to the Vietnamese coastguard and three T-6 trainer aircraft, from an order of 12, while intending to do more.

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Vietnam

Opinion | Vietnam’s defence pact with North Korea a step back into the shadows

Vietnam’s future depends not on nostalgia or political theatre but on its capacity to engage openly with the modern world.

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Vietnam

Vietnam’s top leader heads to North Korea for first visit in 18 years

The visit will be more about strengthening political ties and cultural exchanges than making trade or military deals, analysts say.

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Vietnam’s Communist Party General Secretary To Lam (centre) is welcomed upon arrival at Pyongyang International Airport on Thursday. Photo: Vietnam News Agency/AFP
Vietnam

Asian Angle | Is Vietnam’s tech dream stuck in the assembly line?

Vietnam needs to focus on upgrading domestic capacity and implementing urgent reforms, or risk becoming a second-tier assembly line.

Workers stitch garments at a factory in Vietnam’s Thai Nguyen province on July 2. Photo: AFP
Asean

Opinion | Why Vietnam’s US trade deal is a high-risk economic gamble

It’s a strategic chance to catalyse economic reforms but failure risks making Vietnam a dependent client state.

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US-China trade war

Vietnam’s Pham confident of ‘positive’ results ahead of US tariff deal deadline

Results may ‘come earlier than two weeks’, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh tells Summer Davos, pledges ‘good balance’ between US and China.

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Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh talks to attendees at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions, in Tianjin on June 25. Photo: AFP
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