These activities aim to sow public doubt, fuel internal divisions and weaken the Party’s leadership capacity at a critical moment for the country’s future. The focus of attacks has centred on personnel planning for the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat and key leadership positions across the Party, State, Government and armed forces.
With just over a month remaining before the congress convenes, public interest in potential top leadership outcomes has increased nationwide. This attention, seen as a legitimate expression of civic responsibility, has also created opportunities for malicious actors to manipulate public opinion.
According to the assessment, hostile forces have escalated their tactics into what is described as “modern information warfare,” employing artificial intelligence-generated content, deepfake technology, rapid dissemination algorithms and networks of anonymous accounts.
Doctored images and videos involving officials are circulated as purported “internal evidence,” while AI-written commentaries mimic expert analysis but contain political bias and distortions.
In recent days, several individuals described as overseas “scholars” or “independent journalists” have publicly claimed access to “insider sources,” alleging that the 15th Central Committee Plenum on December 15 decided on proposed lists for the new Politburo and key Party and State leadership posts.
These claims contrast with officially reported activities on the same day, when General Secretary To Lam met Hanoi voters following the 10th session of the 15th National Assembly, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended and directed the 81st National Public Security Conference, and National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man chaired a leadership briefing.
The Party has long identified personnel work as decisive to its leadership, viewing cadres as central to all achievements. Over more than 90 years, history has shown personnel selection to be a determining factor in the Party’s victories and its comprehensive leadership of the revolutionary cause.
Nearly four decades of national renewal have underscored the role of successive leadership teams in guiding Vietnam from poverty and backwardness to its current status as an upper-middle-income, developing nation. As late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong once observed, the country has never enjoyed its current stature and position.
Against this backdrop, the 14th National Party Congress is described as pivotal in shaping Vietnam’s trajectory in a new era defined by prosperity and development. Authorities stress the need for proactive, transparent public communication to counter fabricated narratives.
They also call on officials, Party members and citizens to remain vigilant against unverified information circulating on social media, to avoid being misled by malicious content, and to maintain confidence in the personnel work of the congress and the Party’s leadership over national development.