Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc had talks with his Lao counterpart Thongloun Sisoulith in Hanoi on October 25 and thanked him for the sympathy he extended for the victims of the damage caused by flooding in the central region of Vietnam.
The talks were held on the occasion of the Lao PM’s participation in the seventh Ayeyawady-Chao Phraya-Mekong Economic Cooperation Strategy (ACMECS 7) Summit, the eighth Cambodia-Laos-Myanmar-Vietnam Cooperation (CLMV 8) Summit, and the World Economic Forum on the Mekong Region (WEF-Mekong) in Hanoi.
PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc said the Lao PM’s presence contributed to the success of these events.
He congratulated Laos on its successful organisation of the 28th and 29th ASEAN Summits as the ASEAN Chair, expressing his belief that the Lao Government would fulfil its set tasks and the Resolution of the 10th Congress of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.
He also praised PM Thongloun Sisoulith’s recent dialogue with Vietnamese businesses and his pledge to create favourable conditions for Vietnamese investors in Laos.
The two government leaders agreed to task the two Ministries of Industry and Trade with devising solutions to boost bilateral trade and improving the Vietnam-Laos border trade agreement.
They also pledged to urge Vietnamese enterprises to carry out projects, particularly those on hydropower and mining, in Laos on schedule.
For his part, PM Thongloun Sisoulith extended condolences to the Party, State and people of Vietnam over the heavy damage inflicted by flooding in the central region.
He applauded Vietnam’s initiative to organise the WEF-Mekong and thanked Vietnam for its support of Laos in fulfilling its role as ASEAN Chair in 2016 and in successfully organising the ASEAN Summits last September.
PM Thongloun noted that Vietnam’s investment is on the rise in Laos and has considerably contributed to local socio-economic development, underling the fact that Vietnam currently ranks third among foreign investors in Laos.
Both leaders agreed that the two Governments would set up a committee for organising activities to mark the 55th anniversary of the founding of the countries’ diplomatic ties and the 40 years since the signing of the Laos – Vietnam Friendship and Cooperation Treaty.
They also agreed to set up a specific mechanism for their meetings and attend sessions of the Inter-governmental Committee on Cooperation so as to swiftly tackle problems in bilateral relations.
Source: KPL
