Vietnam has elected Luong Cuong, a military general, as its new president, the fourth official to fill the role in 18 months.

Vietnam's parliament elected on Monday army general Luong Cuong as the new state president in a widely anticipated move that is expected to bring some stability to Vietnamese politics after a turbulent phase of departures and reshuffles.

Cuong, 67, was elected by the National Assembly to replace To Lam, who remained president even after he was formally appointed as the general secretary of the ruling Communist Party in August.