Vietnam - Laos held high-level talks and signed nine cooperation documents.

General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong holds talks with Lao General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith. Photo: Tri Dung/VNA

According to the special correspondent of the Vietnam News Agency, the Lao Party General Secretary and President warmly welcomed Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to the official friendship visit to Laos, emphasizing that the first foreign visit of Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong as Party General Secretary and President once again deeply demonstrated the great friendship, special solidarity, closeness, trust and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, two States and peoples, and at the same time was a great source of encouragement for the Lao people who are striving to successfully implement the Resolution of the 10th Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party.

General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith thanked the Party, State and people of Vietnam for always giving Laos great support and assistance in the cause of national defense and construction; emphasized the great achievements that the Vietnamese people have achieved in the renovation process and the continuous improvement of their position and prestige in the international arena, which have brought the Party, State and people of Laos valuable experiences in successfully carrying out the tasks of protecting and building the country according to the renovation policy of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party.

Lao Party General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith and Party General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong review the Lao People's Army's honor guard at the official welcoming ceremony. Photo: Tri Dung/VNA

General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith expressed his firm belief that, under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the Vietnamese people will continue to achieve even greater new achievements in the cause of national construction and defense, successfully realizing the goal of turning Vietnam into a modern industrialized country by 2030.

General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong expressed his joy at revisiting the beautiful country of Laos and sincerely thanked the General Secretary, President and people of Laos for their warm welcome and comradely and brotherly affection for him and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, vividly demonstrating the close relationship between the two Parties, States and peoples.

General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong warmly congratulated the great and historic achievements that the Lao people have achieved over 30 years of renovation; affirmed strong and comprehensive support for the renovation, protection and construction of Laos; and believed that the Lao people will definitely successfully implement the goals and tasks set by the 10th Congress of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, successfully building a peaceful, independent, democratic, unified and prosperous Laos according to the socialist goal.

On behalf of the Party, State and people of Vietnam, General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong expressed his deep gratitude to the Lao Party, State and people for always giving Vietnam their wholehearted support and assistance in the past struggle for national liberation, as well as in the present cause of national construction and defense.

Reviewing the glorious revolutionary journeys of each nation, the two leaders expressed deep pride in the long tradition of special solidarity and the loyal relationship between the two Parties and peoples of Vietnam and Laos, which was cultivated by President Ho Chi Minh, President Kaysone Phomvihane, President Souphanouvong and many generations of leaders and people of Vietnam and Laos; affirmed their determination to preserve and promote that tradition as a priceless asset of both nations.

The two sides affirmed to continuously consolidate and develop the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two Parties, two States and peoples of Vietnam and Laos, considering this a law of development and an important factor ensuring the victory of the cause of national construction and defense in each country.

Reiterating President Ho Chi Minh's saying, "The Lao revolution cannot lack the help of the Vietnamese revolution and the Vietnamese revolution cannot lack the help of the Lao revolution," the two leaders affirmed that in the context of the complicated developments in the world and the region, more than ever, the two Parties, two States and peoples of the two countries must join hands, be united, strongly promote the tradition of solidarity and cooperation, help each other, and continue to move the revolutionary cause of the two nations forward steadily towards the goal of socialism.

Leaders of the two countries witnessed the signing ceremony of cooperation documents.

The two sides agreed to promote comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos on the basis of promoting the spirit of independence, self-reliance and self-strengthening, promoting the strengths and capabilities of each country on the principle of equality and mutual benefit, while giving each other reasonable priority and incentives in accordance with the nature of the special Vietnam-Laos relationship.

In that spirit, the two sides agreed to continue to strengthen political cooperation, maintain regular high-level contacts, expand exchanges between sectors, levels, unions, people's organizations and localities, especially those bordering the two countries. The two leaders especially emphasized the need to deepen information exchange, theory-practice, and experience sharing in Party building, especially in preparing for Party Congresses at all levels towards the National Party Congress of each Party, building a streamlined, effective and efficient political system; strengthen the exchange of situations and experiences in political and ideological education, cyber security, combating degradation and self-evolution, improving the Party's inspection and supervision capacity; share experiences in socio-economic development, especially stabilizing the macro-economy and expanding relations and international integration.

The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in defense and security, maintain political stability, and social order and safety in each country; build a stable and sustainable border between the two countries; strongly promote and improve the effectiveness of cooperation in economics, culture, education, health, science and technology; create a favorable legal corridor for cooperation in all fields and prioritize strengthening connectivity and complementarity between the two economies, especially connectivity in transportation, electricity, telecommunications, and tourism; continue to improve the quality of cooperation in education, training, and human resource development, focusing on training high-quality human resources.

General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong and General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith were pleased to see that Vietnam and Laos have a unified stance on international and regional issues. The two leaders affirmed that in the context of the current fast-changing and complicated situation, the two sides will continue to coordinate closely, provide timely and effective information, and support each other, especially within the framework of ASEAN cooperation, the United Nations, and the Mekong Sub-region cooperation mechanisms; coordinate in the management and sustainable use of Mekong River water resources, ensuring the harmony of interests of Mekong River countries; and strengthen close coordination with each other and with other third parties within the framework of the East-West Corridor and other multilateral cooperation programs and projects.

The two leaders stressed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and safety in the East Sea; supported the role and principles of ASEAN; agreed to promote the settlement of disputes in the East Sea by peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; and together with relevant parties fully and effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and soon reach a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC), contributing to maintaining peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world.

On this occasion, General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong thanked Laos for supporting Vietnam's candidacy for a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2020-2021 term and its role as ASEAN Chair in 2020.

General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong respectfully invited General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith and his wife to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time. General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith sincerely thanked and happily accepted the invitation.

Immediately after the talks, General Secretary and President Nguyen Phu Trong and General Secretary and President Bounnhang Vorachith witnessed the signing ceremony of cooperation documents between a number of ministries and branches of the two countries.

9 cooperation documents between Vietnam and Laos:

- Cooperation agreement between the Ministry of Finance of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Ministry of Finance of the Lao People's Democratic Republic for the period 2019-2020.

- Agreement on Cooperation in the Development of Electric Power and Mining Projects between the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

- Agreement between the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic on the construction and operation of the Vung Ang-Vientiane railway.

- Memorandum of Understanding on enhancing cooperation between the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Vietnam and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Laos in the field of climate change response and biodiversity conservation.

- Minutes of handover and acceptance of the construction project of basic topographic information database serving planning, socio-economic development and environmental resource monitoring between the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Vietnam and the Ministry of Home Affairs of Laos.

- Minutes of Agreement on implementing investment projects and innovation in technological equipment for Lao National Radio, between the Voice of Vietnam of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

- Minutes of handover and acceptance of the project to build the Agricultural Technical Service Center in Houaphan province between the Government of the Lao People's Democratic Republic and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

- Agreement on implementing the project to repair and upgrade the President Ho Chi Minh memorial site in Xieng Vang village, Noong Boc district, Khammouane province, between the Kaysone Phomvihane Museum Management Board, Lao People's Democratic Republic and the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

- Minutes of handover and acceptance of the project on Strengthening Research and Technology Development Capacity for the Lao National Institute of Science, between the Lao National Institute of Science and the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology.