Khai was widely praised for boosting the country's economic development.
Former Prime Minister Phan Van Khai dies at age 85.
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Before he was elected Prime minister in 1997, Khai was deputy secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee, the city's chairman, head of the State Planning Commission (now the Ministry of Planning and Investment), vice chairman of the Council of Ministers, and deputy PM.
In 2002, PM Khai was reelected, but resigned in 2006 one year before his term ended.
"I am concerned over the bureaucracy, waste, corruption and the theft of public assets. As seen in recent cases of embezzlement, part of the responsibility lies with the investors, but the government and I should also be blamed," Khai said in his resignation speech.
"I hope that my successor will learn from my weaknesses."
The former PM was regarded by many economists as a leader and reformist with a strong determination to integrate with the world market and realize the full potential of the economy, especially the private sector.
Khai was responsible for submitting the Law on Enterprises in 1999 to the National Assembly (NA), and defended the law before the Politburo and the NA.
He then set up a working group to implement the law and started by reducing sublicenses, cutting half of them to make things easier for businesses and contributing a significant part in helping the growth of the private sector.
Khai also presented the bill on the US-Vietnam Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), which was signed in 2001 and became the first Vietnamese leader to visit the US at the invitation of former President George W. Bush in 2005, opening a new chapter for cooperation between the two nations.
In 2014, he was awarded the Gold Star Order, the highest decoration given by the Vietnamese government to a military or civil personnel who made exceptional service for the revolutionary cause of the Party and the nation.
