Vietnam's new leader To Lam arrives in China on his first overseas trip

Vietnamese leader To Lam started a three-day visit to China on Sunday in his first overseas trip since assuming his country's top post about two weeks ago.

Lam arrived in the morning in Guangzhou. an industrial and export hub near Hong Kong, Chinese state media reported. His agenda included visiting sites in the southern China city where former Vietnamese communist leader Ho Chi Minh spent time, the state-owned Global Times newspaper said in a social media post.

He is to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and other senior officials during his trip.

Lam was confirmed as general secretary of Vietnam's Communist Party, the top leadership position, on Aug. 3. He also has held the largely ceremonial title of the nation's president since May. Lam succeeded Nguyen Phu Trong, who died on July 19 after 13 years as general secretary.

The new leader is expected to continue his predecessor's strategy of balancing ties with China, the United States and Russia, Yu Xiangdong, the director of the