Party chief, state president Trong back to work soon: foreign ministry

Heavy workload and weather conditions had affected Trong’s health, the spokeswoman Le Thi Thu Hang told the press on Thursday.

"The President, (Party) General Secretary will come back to work soon," Hang said in response to questions from foreign reporters, including those with the AFP news agency, about some sources saying Trong had suffered a stroke during a working visit to Kien Giang Province earlier this month. The reporters enquired about Trong's current health status and where he was being treated.

Trong and his entourage paid a visit to the southern Kien Giang Province on April 13-14, when they discussed with local authorities the implementation of socio-economic, security and national defense tasks.

Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong (3rd, L) and his entourage during their visit to Kien Giang Province on April 14, 2019. Photo by Vietnam News Agency

On April 18, he sent a congratulatory message to new leaders of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, who were elected at the first session of the 14th Supreme People's Assembly.

On April 21, he sent a message of condolence to Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena over the bomb blasts last Sunday that killed more than 300 people and wounded nearly 500.

In October last year, Trong, 75, became the first person after Ho Chi Minh to simultaneously head the party and executive branches of governance in Vietnam.

Over the past three years, a sweeping corruption crackdown spearheaded by Trong has ensnared scores of high-profile officials, especially in the energy and banking sectors.

Last year, a large number of officials, including military officers, and businesspeople faced criminal charges for mismanagement of military land.