Peru's Castillo swears in new prime minister in bid to calm political instability

FILE PHOTO: Peru's President Pedro Castillo and Guido Bellido gesture after Castillo named Bellido as his prime minister during an event at the Pampas de Ayacucho Historic Sanctuary, in Ayacucho, Peru July 29, 2021. REUTERS/Angela Ponce//File Photo

LIMA (Reuters) -Peru's President Pedro Castillo swore in Mirtha Vasquez, a left-wing former head of Congress, as prime minister on Wednesday, replacing her predecessor who resigned after two months in the job, as the administration grapples with political instability.

The move keeps Castillo, a member of a Marxist-Leninist party, on the left of the political spectrum. But it moderates his cabinet overall. Castillo kept center-left Economy Minister Pedro Francke in the role, and named a new energy & mines minister, Eduardo Gonzalez Toro.