Vo Van Kiet

Vo Van Kiet

Võ Văn Kiệt (23 November 1922 – 11 June 2008) was a Vietnamese politician and statesman. He was a veteran fighter in the long war against French and then American military forces in South Vietnam, and lost his first wife and two children to US bombing. He was Prime Minister of Vietnam from 8 August 1991 to 25 September 1997, who led the communist nation's return to the world arena after decades of war and isolation. He was one of the Vietnamese political leaders that led the innovation (Đổi mới) policy in Vietnam. His birth name was Phan Văn Hòa and he changed it to Võ Văn Kiệt when he joined the Indochinese Communist Party. He also had a pseudonym, Sáu Dân.