Vietnam's Communist Party chief Nguyen Phu Trong has died aged 80, state media said on Friday. He held the country's most powerful position for more than a decade.

State media, citing information from Trong's medical team, said he died in the early afternoon of Friday "after a period of illness."

Vietnamese President To Lam took over Trong's duties on Thursday when the party announced that Trong needed to focus on medical treatment.

Rumors of Trong's deteriorating health had been circulating for days and he had rarely been seen in public this year. His last public appearance was on 20 June, when he held talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin during a state visit to Vietnam.

His reign as general secretary was the longest since Le Duan took control after the death of revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh in 1969, making him one of the most powerful politicians in Vietnam for decades.

Architect of biggest anti-corruption campaign

Trong dominated Vietnamese politics since he was elected party general secretary in 2011, the most powerful position in the Communist-ruled nation.

He served as the country's president from 2018-21 and had three consecutive terms as general secretary. He secured a third term in 2021 after a rule limiting holders to two terms as party boss was waived.

As the architect of what's billed Vietnam's largest anti-corruption campaign, he was considered one of the most powerful leaders in the country. 

During his time in office, thousands of people were arrested on corruption charges. A crackdown on dissidents and activists also intensified in the one-party state.

Analysts said that Trong's high-profile anti-corruption drive was linked to political infighting. The anti-corruption campaign took on members of the Communist party, police and the army.

Last year, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc resigned following a scandal over the country's handling of COVID-19. Two deputy prime ministers were removed from office.

Trong's rise to power

Born in April 1944 to a peasant family in the suburbs of Hanoi, Trong studied literature and socialist theory before traveling to the Soviet Union to earn a doctorate in Communist Party building.

Trong first joined the Communist Party in 1968. Then he worked as a journalist for Communist Review magazine, where he rose to become editor-in-chief.

He became a member of the party's Central Committee in 1994, and served as head of the rubber-stamp National Assembly since 2006, before beginning his first term as party General Secretary in 2011.

Vietnam is officially led by four pillars: the General Secretary, the President, the Prime Minister, and the Chairman of the National Assembly.

dh/fb,rm (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)