Vientiane (VNA) - The Party, State, and peopleof Laos and Vietnam have always stood shoulder to shoulder and shared both thesweet and bitter moments during war times and in their national defence, construction,and development causes, President of the Laos-VietnamFriendship Association Prof. Dr. Boviengkham Vongdara has said.

In an interview granted to theVietnam News Agency in Laos on the occasion of the 61st foundinganniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries (September 5, 1962 –2023), Vongdara recalled that the great friendship, special solidarity, and comprehensivecooperation between Vietnam and Laos have endured through many decadesand continue to grow stronger.

According to him, the close bond between the twocountries stems from the fact that both the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) andthe Lao People's Revolutionary Party (LPRP) both have their origin in theIndochinese Communist Party.

After 1945, under the leadership of the Indochinese CommunistParty, and later the CPV and the LPRP, the two countries consistentlymaintained a close, steadfast, and pure relationship in the spirit ofbrotherhood and comradeship.

During the comprehensive renewal period in the mid-1980s, the two countriescontinued to work together to preserve and promote their great friendship, specialsolidarity, and comprehensive cooperation, he noted.


In recent years, Vietnam has continued to stand besides and support Laos in itssocio-economic development efforts. It has consistently been one of the threelargest investors in Laos. Two-way trade has maintained growth annually, contributingto strongly promoting socio-economic development in both nations.

TheVietnam-Laos, Laos – Vietnam friendship associations haveperformed well their role in promoting people-to-people diplomacy,especially in popularising the great friendship between Laos and Vietnam, hesaid, noting that the close cooperation and initiatives undertaken by bothassociations have helped Vietnamese and Lao people understand each otherbetter, thus strengthening their unity.

He underlined the need for the two nations to further strengthen theirfriendship, special solidarity, and comprehensive cooperation, focusing on enhancingpolitical ideology education for people from all walks of life, especiallyyouths, to help them have a deeper understanding about the Vietnam-Laos relationship, whichis a common asset that the two nations have cultivated,thus further developing this one-of-a-kind relationship.

Laos and Vietnam should also continue their close coordination and mutual supportat multilateral forums, especially within ASEAN, he said./.