Vientiane (VNA) - Had it notbeen for the leadership and guidance of President Ho Chi Minh, the revolution inLaos would not have been as successful as it was, according to SounthoneSayachak, Chairwoman of the External Relations Commission of the Lao People’sRevolutionary Party (LPRP) Central Committee.

She made the comments during a recent interviewwith the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 130th birthday of the lateVietnamese leader (May 19).

She noted that the Indochinese Communist Party,the predecessor of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) and the LPRP, wasestablished on February 3, 1930, by Ho Chi Minh, who was then known as NguyenAi Quoc. Since its foundation, the struggle for independence by the Vietnamese,Lao, and Cambodian peoples witnessed historic turning points and ended in gloriousvictories, leading to the independence of Vietnam on September 2, 1945, and ofLaos on October 12 of the same year.

Under the impervious and clear-sightedleadership of the Indochinese Communist Party, the Vietnam-Laos combatant alliancewas set up and, during the nine-year resistance war against the Frenchcolonialists, gained successive triumphs, in particular the historic victory ofthe Dien Bien Phu Campaign in May 1954 that forced the French to sign theGeneva Accords and recognise the independence of the three Indochinesecountries.

The peoples of Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia then continuedto stand shoulder-to-shoulder in the fight against the US imperialists and won aresounding triumph in 1975, ending one of the fiercest wars in the history ofhumankind, according to Sounthone Sayachak.

She said the Lao Party, military, and people arewell aware that the success of their revolution is inseparable from Vietnam’s revolutionand attributable in part to the priceless and timely assistance from the CPV,President Ho Chi Minh, and the Vietnamese army and people.

It could be said that the success of the Laorevolution, the establishment and development of the LPRP, and the completeliberation of the Lao people and them following the path of socialism are due tothe leadership and guidance of President Ho, the chairwoman noted.

Echoing this view, former Deputy Prime Ministerof Laos Somsavat Lengsavath said that from the late 1940s onwards, President HoChi Minh shared Vietnam’s experience in building military resistance bases withKaysone Phomvihane, who was later President of Laos, and this is why the late Laoleader chose Houaphanh province, which borders Vietnam, as the country’srevolutionary base.

President Ho Chi Minh also assigned General VoNguyen Giap to directly coordinate with Kaysone Phomvihane to help Laos developits military. Thanks to President Ho’s sincere support and judiciousrecommendations, the Lao Issara (Lao Freedom) Army, now the Lao People’s ArmedForces, was established on January 20, 1949, and the Neo Lao Issara (LaoFreedom Front), now the Lao Front for National Construction, in 1950.

Somsavat Lengsavath said the Vietnamese leader’srecommendations were precise and suited the circumstances in Laos at the time,helping its revolution attain consecutive victories in national liberation anddevelopment.

Meanwhile, Kikeo Khaykhamphithoun, Secretary ofthe LPRP Central Committee and Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism,said President Ho Chi Minh was always a “close friend” of the Lao people andgreatly contributed to the country’s revolution.

He quoted the late leader as saying that if theLao revolution hadn’t succeeded and the colonialists hadn’t been driven out,the Vietnamese revolution and country would not have been able to survive.

The minister emphasised that President Ho ChiMinh held a crucial role in the revolution in Laos, adding that the Lao peoplealways keep in mind his dedication and will continue to apply his advice in today’sdevelopment efforts, particularly the promotion of the special solidaritybetween the two countries./.