The most important powers within the Vietnamese Government--in addition to the Communist Party--are the executive agencies created by the 1992 constitution: the offices of the president and the prime minister. The Vietnamese President, presently Tran Duc Luong, functions as head of state but also serves as the nominal commander of the armed forces and chairman of the Council on National Defense and Security. The Prime Minister of Vietnam, presently Phan Van Khai, heads a cabinet currently composed of three deputy prime ministers and the heads of 26 ministries and commissions, all confirmed by the National Assembly.

Notwithstanding the 1992 constitution's reaffirmation of the central role of the Communist Party, the National Assembly, according to the constitution, is the highest representative body of the people and the only organization with legislative powers. It has a broad mandate to oversee all government functions. Once seen as little more than a rubber stamp, the National Assembly has become more vocal and assertive in exercising its authority over lawmaking, particularly in recent years. However, the National Assembly is still subject to party direction. More than 80% of the deputies in the National Assembly are party members. The assembly meets twice yearly for 7-10 weeks each time; elections for members are held every 5 years, although its Standing Committee meets monthly and there are now over 100 "full-time" deputies who function on various committees. There is a separate judicial branch, but it is still relatively weak. Overall, there are few lawyers and trial procedures are rudimentary.

The present 15-member Politburo, elected in April 2001 and headed by Communist Party General Secretary Nong Duc Manh, determines government policy, and its Secretariat oversees day-to-day policy implementation. Although there has been some effort to discourage membership in overlapping party and state positions, this practice continues. Five of the Politburo members--President Tran Duc Luong, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, Minister of Public Security Le Hong Anh, and Defense Minister Pham Van Tra--concurrently hold high positions in the government, while another--Nguyen Van An--serves as Chairman of the National Assembly. In addition, the Party's Central Military Commission, which is composed of select Politburo members and additional military leaders, determines military policy.

A Party Congress, comprised of 1,168 delegates at the Ninth Party Congress in April 2001, meets every 5 years to set the direction of the party and the government. The 150-member Central Committee, which was elected by the Party Congress, usually meets at least twice a year.

Politburo (Ninth Party Congress Politburo, named April 22, 2001; listed in order of rank as of April 5, 2005)

General Secretary of CPV Central Committee, 9th Party Congress--Nong Duc Manh
President--Tran Duc Luong
Prime Minister--Phan Van Khai
Secretary, Party's Committee of Ho Chi Minh City--Nguyen Minh Triet
Executive Deputy Prime Minister--Nguyen Tan Dung
Former Minister of Public Security-- Senior Lieutenant General Le Minh Huong
Secretary of Hanoi Party Committee, concurrently Chairman of the CPV Central Committee's Council for Theoretical Affairs--Nguyen Phu Trong
Executive Member of the CPV Central Committee's Secretariat--Phan Dien
Minister of Public Security--Le Hong Anh
Chairman of the Party Central Committee's Economics Commission--Truong Tan Sang

Minister of Defense--General Pham Van Tra
Chairman of the National Assembly--Nguyen Van An
Vice Chairman of the National Assembly--Truong Quang Duoc
Chairman of the CPV Commission for Personnel and Organization, concurrently Director of the HoChiMinh National Political Academy, Secretary of the Party Central Committee--Tran Dinh Hoan
Chairman of the CPV Commission for Ideological and Cultural Affairs, Secretary of the Party Central Committee--Nguyen Khoa Diem

Vietnam maintains an embassy in the U.S. at 1233-20th Street, NW, #400, Washington DC 20036 (tel. 202-861-0737; fax 202-861-0917); Internet home page: www.vietnamembassy-usa.org/ . There is also a consulate general located in San Francisco at 1700 California Street, Suite 430, San Francisco, CA 94109 (tel. 415-922-1707; fax 415-922-1848; Internet homepage: www.vietnamconsulate-sf.org .