The President of Laos received an honorary doctorate degree from Guangxi University for Nationalities in Beijing last week.
President Thongloun Sisoulith visited China for the first time as President of Laos with his wife and other officials from 29 November to 1 December.
The President was awarded a degree in Foreign Language and Literature by Xie Shangguo, the President of Guangxi University for Nationalities.
He stated that the degree is a sign of a significant, strong friendship and a contribution to the improvement of the relationship between Laos and China.
The university also has extensive relations with Laos in technical cooperation, exchange of teaching and learning, and support for the development of human resources, particularly the establishment of the Confucius Institute in Laos in 2007.
President Thongloun Sisoulith hoped that the university will continue to strengthen cooperation with educational institutions in Laos and assist to improve quality of teaching and research to meet international standards.
During his tour, the Lao president met with Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang and President of China’s National People’s Congress Li Zhanshu at the National People’s Congress.
He also met with the President of China, Xi Jinping and expressed his condolences over the passing of former President Jiang Zemin. They spoke about increasing their cooperation to maintain peace, stability, development and prosperity in the region as well.
The two leaders also presided over the signing of bilateral cooperation documents in areas like economy and trade, finance, culture, education and regional development. During their meeting, Xi Jinping said that the country will encourage more Chinese companies to invest in Laos and also look at importing quality products from Laos to China.
He also cited the completion of Laos-China as an example of further strengthening the bilateral ties between the two nation. President Sisoulith expressed his hope that the two sides can strengthen practical cooperation in economics, trade and investment to transform Laos from a land-locked to a land-linked country.
