The meeting was co-held by the Vietnamese border delegation, led by Deputy Foreign Minister and Head of the National Boundary Commission under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Le Hoai Trung, and the Lao border delegation, led by Lao Foreign Minister Saleumsay Kommasith.
At the meeting. Photo: Vietnam+
In an open, friendly, united and comprehensively cooperative atmosphere, the two sides reviewed the implementation of inked bilateral border agreements and the minutes of the previous meeting.
They highlighted strict maintenance of periodic meetings, bilateral patrols, information sharing; effective management and protection of border markers and borderline; good prevention and control of cross-border crimes, especially crimes involving in national security, religious practice, and drug trafficking. These outcomes have actively contributed to upholding national sovereignty, political security, social order and safety along the borderline of the two countries.
Also at the meeting, the two sides evaluated the remaining part of the project on increasing and upgrading a system of national border markers, and spoke highly of the fruitful development in cooperation in economics, trade, culture, education, health and tourism between Vietnamese and Lao border localities.
They hailed initial results of the implementation of the governmental-level agreement on resolving free migration and unlicensed marriages in border areas and the “one-stop-shop” model piloted at the Lao Bao-Dansavanh border gate.
They also expressed their pleasure at the new development in multifaceted cooperation between border localities and lauded great efforts of ministries, sectors and border localities on border management and protection as well as the fruitful ties of localities in border areas.
The two sides mapped out their cooperation orientations for this year, including early approval of an agreement on the Vietnam-Laos border and border gate management mechanisms and a protocol on Vietnam-Laos borderline and national border markers; increased cooperation of relevant forces on border management; summarization of the “one-stop-shop” model; effective implementation of some agreements, planning projects on developing border gates, upgrading transport infrastructure and promoting border trade and the agreement on free migration and unlicensed marriages in border areas.
They also agreed to raise public awareness of law in contribution to upholding of social order and safety as well as development in border areas.
The two delegation heads signed on the minutes of the meeting and agreed that Vietnam will host the next meeting in December this year.
Translated by Mai Huong