(VOVworld) – Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his Lao counterpart Thoonglun Sisoulith co-chaired 39^th meeting of the Vietnam – Laos Intergovernmental Committee in Hanoi on Wednesday.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (R) and Lao Prime Minister Thoonglun Sisoulith (Photo: Nguyen Hong)

The meeting is aimed to scrutinize the implementation of high-raking agreements and how to promote cooperation between the two countries. In his opening statement, Prime Minister Phuc said this was the first meeting co-chaired by the two Prime Ministers to elevate bilateral ties. In 2017, the two sides will celebrate 40 years since the signing of the Vietnam – Laos Treaty of Amity and Cooperation and the 55th anniversary of the two countries’ diplomatic ties.  The Vietnamese Prime Minister said Vietnam and Laos have fine-tuned their Cooperative Committee led by the Minister of Planning and Investment. He expressed his hope that the chairs of the committees will ensure efficiency of bilateral cooperation: “The two countries’ delegations need to give specific and objective evaluations of the past performance, propose significant measures and initiatives, and include high-level cooperative agreements in annual plan. The Vietnam-Lao relationship is second to none in the world and we will forever nurture this great brotherhood.”

Prime Minister Phuc said Vietnam will do its utmost to help Lao’s national development and work closely with Laos at regional and global forums.

Lao Prime Minister Thoonglun Sisoulith said he believes the meeting will be a success: “I congratulate Vietnam for its socio-economic achievements in economics, security, defense, human resource development, and diplomacy. This will help elevate Vietnam’s stature globally. Today, we discuss bilateral cooperation and put forth measures to boost Vietnam’s investment in Laos and vice versa to benefit both countries. We believe that under the chair of the two Prime Ministers, both sides will discuss frankly and openly to make the meeting a success.”