Vietnam and Laos sign Defence Cooperation Plan 2012
PANO - Lao Deputy-Prime Minister, Defence Minister, Senior Lieutenant-General Douangchay Phichith led a Laotian high-ranking defence delegation has just arrived in Vietnam to begin an official working visit to the country at the invitation of the Vietnamese Defence Minister.
A Vietnamese defence delegation led by Defence Minister, General Phung Quang Thanh had talks with the Laotian visiting delegation on the morning of March 12 th in Da Nang.
On behalf of the Laotian delegation, Senior-Lieutenant-General Douangchay Phichith expressed joy when paying a working visit to Vietnam and the central, dynamic and beautiful city of Da Nang.
Giving a warm reception of the Laotian delegation, the Vietnamese Minister highlighted that this visit would make a large contribution to preserving and further strengthening special friendship, solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Laos.
At a talk, the two sides briefed each other on recent situations of each country.
The Vietnamese Defence Minister affirmed that Vietnam’s political stability and social security are absolutely maintained. The whole Vietnamese Communist Party is actively deploying and studying the Resolution of the 4 th Central Session of the 11 th Party Congress.
Regarding economy, the Vietnamese Government focuses on macro-economic stability, inflation control, hunger elimination and poverty reduction, social safety network and sustainable development.
Meanwhile, the Lao Deputy-Prime Minister and Defence Minister said that Lao political and security situations are stable, while the Lao economy sees a good growth rate. He also informed that Laos is preparing for a number of international conferences to be held in the country later in 2012.
The two sides expressed their satisfactions with results of cooperation between the two armies in recent time. According to assessment, the two sides have successfully accomplished the Cooperation Plan 2011.
The two defence ministers also agreed to boost defence cooperation in the future, especially in terms of exchanges of visits at all levels, tradition education, personnel training, information exchanges, searching and returning remains of Vietnamese voluntary soldiers and military experts, who laid down their lives in Laos during the past wars.
On the occasion, the Laotian Defence Minister showed his wish to organise a visit to Laos for the Vietnamese voluntary veterans who used to help the Lao people to fight the enemy for its independence and freedom in the wars.
The two sides also agreed to accelerate the pace of the construction of the borderline of friendship, cooperation and development between the two nations.
The Vietnamese Defence Minister underlined that Vietnam and Laos are close friends and good comrades so the two armies should deepen the bilateral ties and improve the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation.
At the end of the talk, the Laotian Defence Minister thanked the host for the esteemed but friendly and warm reception.
After the talk the two sides signed the Cooperation Plan 2012 between the two defence organisations.
On the schedule, the Laotian defence delegation is expected to visit the Da Nang People’s Committee, 143 Regiment of 315 Division under the Military Zone 5 High Command and Naval Zone 3.
