Chief of General Staff of Lao People’s Army visits Vietnam

At the welcome ceremony for Deputy Minister of National Defence and Chief of the General Staff of the Lao People’s Army Sen. Lieut. Gen. Suvon Luongbunmi (R) (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Deputy Minister of National Defence and Chief of the General Staff of the Laos People’s Army Sen. Lieut. Gen. Suvon Luongbunmi is paying an official visit to Vietnam from May 13-17 at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Phan Van Giang.

On May 14 morning, Sen. Lieut. Gen. Phan Van Giang chaired a ceremony to welcome Suvon Luongbunmi and the high-ranking military delegation of Laos.

Afterwards, the Lao military officers paid a courtesy call on Vietnamese Minister of National Defence General Ngo Xuan Lich, who said the visit will make significant contributions to enhancing the special traditional friendship between the two countries and bilateral defence cooperation in particular for the sake of their people.

Sen. Lieut. Gen. Luongbunmi said senior leaders of Laos and Vietnam and their armies have paid great attention to promoting defence cooperative ties. 

He expressed his belief that the sound relations and comprehensive cooperation between the Parties, States, armies and people of Laos and Vietnam will be tightened and strengthened in the future, thus helping to maintain peace, stability and development in each nation.

The two sides agreed to enhance cooperation in training Lao military students and officers in Vietnam in addition to building a shared borderline of stability and comprehensive development.

Vietnam and Laos will also coordinate to speed up the search and repatriation of remains of Vietnamese soldiers and experts who laid down their lives in Laos during the wartime as well as maintaining delegation, culture, and sport exchanges, especially among young officers.

Vietnamese, Lao military officers take a photo together (Photo: VNA)

The same day, Sen. Lieut. Gen Phan Van Giang held talks with his Lao counterpart Suvon Luongbunmi.

They said the cooperation between the Vietnamese and Lao armies has become a key pillar in relations between the two countries, contributing to sustainable development and stability in other fields.

The two sides have strengthened coordination among forces to protect the shared borderline and prevent cross-border crimes, particularly drug crimes.

They also carried out training courses for military experts and officers, share experience and provide mutual support in building and improving the armies’ preparedness for combat.-VNA