Myanmar's President and Aung San Suu Kyi's right-hand man Htin Kyaw has stepped down today after two years of being in the position, his office said. "Myanmar President U Htin Kyaw resigned on March 21, 2018," a statement on the president's official Facebook page said, adding that a new leader would be selected "within seven working days". Vice President U Myint Swe will serve as Acting President.

In 2016, Htin Kyaw was sworn in as President and this landmark elections ended decades of military leadership. However, it is known that Kyaw was essentially a ceremonial leader, with Aung San Suu Kyi acting as de facto President.

As per a report on Frontier, Myanmar, rumours of Htin Kyaw’s impending resignation have been doing the rounds for almost a year but government and National League for Democracy party officials have always denied them. The government has, however, confirmed that Htin Kyaw sought medical treatment abroad on several occasions, most recently in January when he travelled to Singapore. Even though, till now no exact reasons have been cited for Kyaw's resignation, but it is believed that it can be due to his health. The statement posted on the Presidency's Facebook page also says, 'Htin Kyaw wanted to "take a rest".

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 21, 2018 11:28 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).