Strengthening propaganda work on Vietnam - Laos land border management

Key role

The Vietnam - Laos border is about 2,337.459 km long, passing through 10 Vietnamese border provinces, including: Dien Bien, Son La, Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien Hue, Quang Nam, Kon Tum. The bordering side of Laos passes through 10 provinces: Phong Sa Ly, Luang Prabang, Hua Phan, Xieng Khouang, Bo Ly Kham Xay, Kham Muon, Sa Van Na Khet, Sa La Van, Xe Kong and At Ta Pu.

On the Vietnam - Laos border, there are about 168,700 households, with 738,200 people, belonging to 36 ethnic groups, of which ethnic minorities account for 76.3%.

However, the population density in the border area is still sparse; economic, social, cultural and living conditions of the people are still difficult.

Besides, there are still a few nomadic people living with backward education... This causes many difficulties in the management and protection of border lines and landmarks.

From 2008 to 2016, implementing the Project to increase the density and enhance national border markers, Vietnam and Laos coordinated to identify and build 905 locations, corresponding to 1,002 border markers and stakes (not including 2 markers at the border junction with China and Cambodia).

During the implementation of this project, the two sides coordinated to organize 63 meetings at all levels, nearly 100 bilateral interdisciplinary working groups to access the landmark areas and thousands of meetings and working sessions of the Joint Marker Planting Team, to discuss and agree on plans and measures to deploy and implement each item of the project.

At the conference, comrade Nguyen Minh Vu - Alternate member of the Party Central Committee, Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized that over the past years, territorial border work in general and Vietnam - Laos border work in particular have played a crucial role in maintaining a peaceful and stable environment, maintaining national defense and security, creating favorable conditions for economic and social development between Vietnam and Laos and other countries in the ASEAN bloc and the Mekong sub-region...

Regarding bilateral cooperation, Vietnam and Laos have agreed on the orientation of border gate development planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, as a basis for the two sides to have plans and roadmaps for opening and upgrading border gates in accordance with the economic and social development situation of each country.

Up to now, there are 33 border gates in operation between the two countries along the entire route, including 9 international border gates, 6 main border gates and 18 secondary border gates. In addition, the two sides have 29 more openings to meet the needs of travel and contribute to promoting cooperation and development between the two sides of the border...

According to statistics, in 2023, the total value of import and export turnover between the two countries reached 1.56 billion USD. In the first 4 months of 2024, border trade between the two countries reached 593.7 million USD.

In addition, the work of propagating, disseminating and educating the law for people in the provinces sharing the border between Vietnam and Laos has been directed and organized by all levels and sectors from the central to local levels, achieving many positive results.

Innovation in content and form of propaganda

The functional forces of Vietnam and Laos regularly exchange, grasp information, and coordinate to resolve border issues promptly and effectively. However, on the border, criminal activities are still complicated, especially drug-related crimes, human trafficking, smuggling, illegal immigration, etc., which have significantly affected the security, politics, culture, and society in the border area.

At the conference, through the practice of handling issues arising in the management and protection of national borders on the Vietnam - Laos land border, delegates also had many comments on solutions for border management and protection.

In particular, focusing on thoroughly grasping and seriously and effectively implementing the Party's viewpoints and guidelines, the State's leadership and management on foreign affairs; synchronously using measures to manage and protect national borders; strengthening the grasp, research, assessment, and accurate and timely forecasting of the situation on the border and on the border related to territorial sovereignty; strengthening propaganda, dissemination, and legal education for people in border areas...

Concluding the conference, Comrade Vu Thanh Mai - Deputy Head of the Central Propaganda Department affirmed that Vietnam and Laos are two close neighbors, with a special friendship that has been closely linked throughout the history of building and defending the country of the two nations, and are steadfast in the goals of national independence and socialism. In recent years, the border situation of the two countries has been maintained and ensured to be stable.

However, in recent times, the world and regional situation has continued to evolve rapidly and complicatedly; hostile forces continue to take advantage of national, ethnic, and religious border sovereignty issues to spread distorted and fabricated propaganda to sabotage Vietnam and divide the traditional friendship between Vietnam and neighboring countries.

Therefore, all levels, sectors and localities in border areas need to continue to innovate and diversify the content and forms of propaganda, increase the application of information technology, digital transformation, focus on propaganda in the languages ​​of ethnic groups living in border areas and foreign propaganda on border work on land. Innovate methods of participating in building a strong, comprehensive and in-depth border, especially in grasping the local situation; promote the mass movement to protect border lines and landmarks.

Further promote the positive results achieved in implementing tasks, ensure coordination between forces in propaganda and education work is close, timely, multi-dimensional, and comprehensive...