Nong Duc Manh, 61, has been called Vietnam's most cosmopolitan Communist Party leaderand his willingness to grant a rare interview shows he's more open than his predecessor. But when he sat down in Hanoi with TIME correspondent Kay Johnson, it was clear he is no firebrand reformer, but a loyal party man. Manh began the session by reading a pages-long formal statement, but then agreed to answer questions on a range of topics, He was genial, laughed frequently, and spoke frankly on a range of topics, including the rumor that Ho Chi Minh was his real father. Edited...
