Vietnam president To Lam handed power as party leader seeks medical care

HANOI: Vietnam's communist regime handed the reins of power on Thursday (July 18) to the country's largely ceremonial president, as 80-year-old leader and party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong temporarily stood down for health reasons.

The politburo appointed President To Lam (pic) to take over as both the party and country's caretaker leader, the party said in an online statement.